My Little Pony Friendship is Magic: The Ultimate Evil! (Re-write)
by RoverZero1983
Summary: This is a re-write of my original story because I had to keep up with the events of season 3 only the events of the season 3 finale never happened but the Mane 6 will still be facing an enemy so dangerous that they will fight like they never fought before. Maybe even to the death.
1. Chapter 1

My Little Pony Friendship is Magic Fan-Fic by RoverZero1983

Opening notes.

This Story (of mine) will reveal parts of Equestria that have never been revealed before.

New characters, new enemies, New Powers, Twilight Sparkle falling in love, The existence of Humans in their world, New allies, a secret that both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna will reveal to all of Equestria, the ponies befriending a human that will have a big impact on their lives and their world and an evil so powerful that not only would it make Discord, Nightmare Moon, Queen Chrysalis and King Sombra tremble in fear but Twilight Sparkle and her friends will have to fight for their lives like they have never fought before. Maybe even to the death!?

It also has characters and certain fragments from various other Anime that you might recognize but they are my versions of these characters so that their origins are of my original design.

Chapter 1- The Arrival of the fallen stars.

In the middle of the night in the North-western mountains of Equestria a hole opens in the sky shooting a beam of light to the ground And emerging from the light is a tall dark figure.

Unknown figure(name will be revealed later)- "Well it seems that Equestria has changed since that last time I was here, but of course that was over 1500 years ago and I was in a different area at them time. Oh what do we have here?"

A trio of manticores approach the figure and begin to get an uneasy feeling when they begin to talk to him.

Lead manticore-"Well well, it's been a long time since we've seen one of your kind around these parts. I thought your kind disappeared along with the rest of them? Well that does not matter. Soon you will be gone just like the rest of them!"

As they prepared to attack them the figure smiles and says.

Unknown figure-"The 3 of you will do for now as my pawns. It's about time I had some fun around here."

He points his finger at them and shoots a red light into their chests and the manticores begin to clutch their bodies and yell out in pain!

Unknown figure-"Don't resist. Let my power seep into your body and then you will be under my absolute control. Soon I shall have all the power of Equestria added to my own and then I'll be one step closer to becoming a god, but first I'll see how far that power has come along since I was last here."

As he watches as the manticores begin to surrender to his power he issues an order to them.

Unknown figure-"Manticores! I want you to seek out the ones who currently wield the Elements of Harmony and see how much they have grown in strength by fighting them in combat and feel free to use excessive force if you want to, but if Princess Celestia is the one who still wields them then be sure not to kill her. I want to be the one to do that myself."

Manticore trio-"Yes master! We shall obey you!" Then they fly off.

Unknown figure-"Be warned Celestia. I will get what I want even if it means killing those precious to you. I won't hold back!"

One Week Later.

Two ponies, An Alicorn named Bruno and his little sister, a unicorn named Lyra wander through the valley from their 3 year long journey through Equestria hoping to find a new place to call home.

Lyra-"Bruno, Are you absolutely sure about finally settling down in this town? We've been through almost all of Equestria since we left home."

Bruno-"Yeah I'm sure. According to the information I've been hearing from town to town, there's a group of ponies with special powers that live in this town called Ponyville and I've also heard there's a unicorn who is said to be almost as smart as me and that she's a student of Princess Celestia as well."

Lyra-"Well I hope you're right big brother because I have no intention of traveling anymore unless it's to take a vacation! It's been one thing after another in our lives. First is our big brother Vince goes to Hoof caverns and ends up disappearing. Then Dad leaves after he and Mom had that big fight and then Mom died and then you using that power to try and bring her back to life only to end up being pulled in that weird place and when you came back you ended up losing your right arm and back left leg. If it weren't for you finding HIM in that strange world and having him replacing your arm and leg you would have surely bled to death. After all that I just don't know what I would have done if I had lost you too."

Bruno-"Don't you worry Sis. I'm 100% sure on this. Ponyville will be our new home and I can assure you that I have no desire to do THAT again for as long as I live and it's a good thing I found HIM and decided to bring him along with us. His special Abilities are worth studying to help Equestria out. Hey look We're almost there. I can see the town just over the ridge."

Lyra-"That's great but I'm getting tired Bruno. I really need to rest a bit."

Bruno-"I'll tell you what sis. If you want You can get on my back and I'll fly us the rest of the way there."

Lyra-"That would be nice".

As Lyra rests on her brothers back, Bruno flies the rest of the way to Ponyville and when they arrive they were given an unusual welcome as the other ponies just stare at them.

Bruno-"Huh, I was not expecting this kind of welcome. Hey sis wake up, We're here."

Lyra- "Oh, so this is Ponyville. I pictured it a bit bigger than this."

Bruno-"Oh hello there. I'm looking for whoever is in charge here. Can anypony help us out?"

Mayor-"Well hello there! How may I help you in our fine little town? Wait a minute. You're an Alicorn aren't you? I always thought that Princess Luna & Celestia were the only ones I was aware of in all of Equestria."

As the Mayor continues to ask a bunch of questions. Rarity, Applejack and Twilight Sparkle come in to intervene.

Twilight Sparkle- "Mayor please! I know you get excited when Newcomers come to Ponyville, but there's no need for you to get to personal with them even if one of them is an Alicorn."

Applejack-"I agree. Where are your manners Mayor!"

Rarity- "Besides we need to show them around out town and then we should...Wait a second! Those cutie marks! I've seen those before."

Twilight & Applejack- "You have?"

Rarity-"I recognize those marks from a piece of artwork I've seen in Canterlot. The Gold Star mark means that they are from the Legendary "Star Pony Family!"

Applejack-"Star Pony Family? Where do I know that name from?"

Twilight-"Oh I know where that name comes from. Princess Celestia told me that the name belongs to one of the few but great noble families in all of Equestria. One of the things they are known for is their very talented art work and mastery of powerful magic spells and that they sometimes help the royal family with diplomatic affairs in Equestria. However I heard from Princess Celestia that a few years ago because of a civil dispute among the family they broke-up and the one who was supposed to take over the family just left and was nowhere to be found and because of that action the family just fell apart, and as for their so called cutie marks, the Gold star on them is technically not a cutie mark but a birth mark which is a mark that they are born with and as for their actual cutie marks the only mark I see on him is a comet and what looks like a sunflower with crystal petals on her. Huh I wonder what those marks mean?"

Rarity-"Now who's getting too personal, Twilight!

Twilight-"Whoops. Sorry about that."

Bruno-"Well your friend there is not wrong about what she said a second ago, but we don't know much about about our family history and as for what she said about the family breaking up. The one responsible for that was our father. He only told us and our older brother about where he came from if we promised that we never ever go there."

Twilight-"Why is that?"

Bruno-"It's because that what he told us was a family secret and that they want to protect their family bloodline by selfishly marrying off their kin to those suitable for the survival of the family name and bloodline. In fact if our father had stayed behind he would not have met, fallen in love and married our mother and we would not have been born."

Twilight-"Wow!"

Lyra-"Brother please! You can tell them our life story another time. Focus on what we need to do first. I apologize for my brother. He tends to talk way too much. Any way we were wondering if there was a place we can buy here in Ponyville to live in? Ever since we left our home of Horseshoe Bay almost 4 years ago we've been traveling around most of Equestria.

Mayor-"Well the one in charge of finding homes here in Ponyville went on vacation last week and won't be back until tomorrow evening, but there is a lovely INN nearby that you are more than welcome to stay at until he returns and I'll let him know about your desire to find your a new home that morning."

Bruno-"So 2 days huh? Sure, that will be alright for now. Thanks for your help Mayor! Also Can you point us to some place where my sister and I can get a bite to eat. I'm Starving!

Twilight-"Actually there's this little cafe that Applejack, Rarity and I are meeting our friends at in a little while. Do you and your sister want to join us? My friends and I would like to get to know you two better and I'd be interested in hearing about your travels around Equestria. Oh where are my manners. My name is Twilight Sparkle and this is Applejack and this is Rarity."

Bruno-"Well it's a pleasure to meet you and yes I would like to join you for some lunch. In fact since you were so nice to us with this welcome, Lunch will be my treat and don't worry about the bill. I've got lot a money that my sister and I have earned from our travels to treat you and your friends too."

As Bruno, Lyra, Twilight, Applejack and Rarity meet Spike, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie at the cafe, the nine of them begin to talk for a bit about themselves and until the table they were at breaks and they witness something they never seen before.

Horte Cuisine(Cafe owner from "The ticket master")- Oh I'm so very sorry about that table. It's about time I got a new one but I don't know if I have enough money to replace it."

Bruno-"That's OK. I'm thankful that we all ate our lunches before it happened and as for replacing it, you let me take care of that.

Rainbow Dash-"Hold on a minute! Do you even have the money to buy him a new table?"

Twilight-"I know you and your sister have a lot of money and I can see you are a very nice pony for wanting to help others but you'll just end up spending your money and then overtime it's gone."

Bruno-"First of all, Rainbow Dash, I have LOADS of Money that will last me and my sister for at least the next 15 years thanks to a combination of our parents saving up since before we were born, doing odd jobs during our travels and making some clever and lucky bets on the Wonderbolts, and as for You Twilight, I'm going to fix this table with something that looks like magic but isn't magic. First gather all the pieces for me.

Applejack-"Wait just one minute! There are only 2 ways to fix something like that and considering how badly the table is damaged you need magic for that."

Bruno-"That's true but Just watch and see!" As Bruno claps his hooves together he touches the broken table a strange light covers the table and like magic, it's fixed!

Twilight-"HOW DID YOU DO THAT? I've never seen a magic spell like that one ever."

Fluttershy-"I agree, What was that?"

AppleJack-"Oh please. That was magic Hooves down!"

Bruno-"Actually that was not magic at all. It was something I learned called ALCHEMY."

They all say with shock-"ALCHEMY?"

Spike-"What in Equestria is Alchemy?"

Twilight-"Wait! Where do I know that from?"

Applejack-"Yeah. Enlighten us if you please."

Bruno-"OK. You see Alchemy is not magic but Science. Alchemy is the science of understanding the structure of Matter, Breaking it down and then reconstructing it into something else and there's a rumor that it can even turn lead into gold. However for alchemy to work it still must follow the natural law of Equivalent exchange."

Rainbow Dash-"Equivalent exchange? What does that mean?"

Bruno-"It means that if you want to create something you must give up something of equal value. That's what I learned when I read those books I got. Take the table for example, all I did was take all of the broken pieces and then I fused them back together an since the parts of the wood looked a bit rotten I used my alchemy to re-adjust it's atomic structure and made the wood even harder than it was before. I could not make the table bigger than its' original size with out thinning it out and I could not turn it into metal or stone since the table is made of wood with some nails in it to keep it together."

AppleJack-"Um, Did any pony understand that at all?"

Twilight-"Wait! I remember Reading about that in a book called 'Ancient forms of Magic'! The book basically described how the process was done by what Bruno just told us except that you needed to draw a circle with certain markings. I Was very interested in knowing how to use it but when I asked Princess Celestia if there was any more information on it she said..."

Princess Celestia(in a flashback)-"I'm sorry Twilight, but all information about Alchemy is not to be found anywhere in Equestria. It used to be found within the Library of the Grand Palace in the country of Amestris but when I went to search for them in the palace I wasn't able to get back into the palace and when I went to look in the other 5 libraries within the city of Heliopolis they turned out to be of no use to me. I'm sorry Twilight but I'm afraid there's nothing I can do to help you with that."

Twilight-"I asked her if I could go there to look for my self she told me that she looked everywhere for those books and that there was no point in traveling that far for them and that I should move on to something else to read about."

Pinkie Pie-"Hold on! Amestris? Wasn't that the country that the humans once lived in?"

Applejack-"Pinkie Pie, Almost every pony in Equestria knows that."

Rainbow Dash-"Well DUH! We all learned that when we were in school."

Fluttershy-"Oh I would have loved to meet an actual human but it's a shame that they're none around to meet."

Twilight-"Yes. I remember reading in the history books that the humans that lived there were very friendly and were very spiritual and had very good relations with those that lived in Equestria and that some of them practiced alchemy too and if I remember from what Princess Celestia told me there was a massive palace in the center of the country that the rulers of Amestris, Prince Danny and his two Sisters Princess Megan and Princess Molly lived in while ruling the country at that time which was just after their father 'King Lujon' had passed away. Also Princess Celestia told me that the humans always had some sort of festival there twice a year every year. Once at night during a Lunar Eclipse and another during the day of a Solar Eclipse in honor of Both Princess Luna and Princess Celestia for raising the sun and moon. However about 1500 years ago during the festival of the lunar eclipse after Luna & Celestia did the eclipse for them, they had sensed a weird feeling coming from there. Then the following day when they went there they noticed that all of the humans and I mean ALL OF THEM suddenly vanished without a trace! Princess Celestia & Princess Luna searched all over Amestris to see if any human were even still alive but all that they found of them was nothing but their clothing on the ground as if they had been sucked out them. Also she and Luna made an awful discovery. Ten villages looked like they had been attacked just before the eclipse because they saw a massive amount of blood on the ground of each of them and ever since then she declared that until a single human was found that Amestris was off limits to every pony in Equestria."

Spike-"Why would Princess Celestia do that?"

Twilight-"She must have done that to protect them in case any pony did go there and they ended up with the same unknown fate as the humans. As for you Bruno. How is it That you can use Alchemy and how was it you got the information to use it in the first place?"

Bruno-"Well you see it's a bit of a long story and uh- Hey sis why don't you go and introduce your self to those 3 little ponies over there?"

Lyra-"Um OK but I don't know who they are."

Applejack-"Well that one with the red bow is my little sister AppleBloom and the unicorn is Rarity's little sister Sweetie Belle and the Applebloom there is Scootaloo. I'm sure you will like them and they will like you too."

Lyra-"OK!"

Fluttershy-"Why did you send her over to them like that?"

Bruno-"Look, What I'm about to tell you about has something that I did not want my sister to relive again and it does involve How I know Alchemy and why my brother is not with us so pay attention. For as long as I can remember both my sister, brother and I were always home-schooled because our father and mother wanted to keep the truth about our connection to the Star-Pony-Family Kept a secret in the event any of our relatives were seeking us out for the reason I had mentioned to you earlier and over the years being home-schooled really was not half bad and as for how I know alchemy that happened a little over 5 years ago when a package had arrived for us and in it were these 20 books on Alchemy and its' many uses but my father thought it was somewhat strange that these books would come to us out of the blue. He noticed that there was no return address on the box but a note that said 'Use this information that I've gathered wisely to help Equestria to your hearts consent'. My father decided to give it a try and so far out of all of us I was the only one who was able to use it and it turned out to be very useful and I've been using it to help out others in the town I was living in at that time."

Twilight-"Those books just came to you out of blue like that? Did anypony in your village see who was it that brought them to you?"

Bruno-"I'm sorry to say that no one in our town saw who brought them."

Pinkie Pie-"Well that was nice of him or her to bring you those books like that."

Bruno-"I guess you're right on that Pinkie Pie."

Rainbow Dash-"You mentioned an older brother right? What happened to him though?"

Bruno-"Well my older brother Vince. who is also an alicorn like my father and I, had always liked to explore the areas around where we lived and he was good at it. One day about a year later he decided to go and explore Hoof Caverns west of where we lived with his friend Rocky, but after a few days Rocky came back and told us that something weird happened in the caves and that he just vanished and believe me those caves are that deep enough to get lost in. My father went to the caves with everypony he could gather from our town to look for him and there was no trace of him in every twist and turn there was and since there was only one way out they assumed he just up and left but what Rocky told my father was that they saw a path that was not on the map and so my brother went down ahead of him but when he caught up to him he ended up at the end of the path all he saw was a wall. So when he retraced his steps and brought our father to the point where he marked where the path was all that they found was a wall where the path used to be and it look liked it was never there to begin with and all that they found of him was his vest all torn up and his lucky compass next to it. After my father returned from the caverns after 2 weeks of searching he broke the bad news to all of us and our mother did not take it well."

Fluttershy-"Oh my goodness!"

Twilight-"I can't believe something like that happened to you and your family!"

Bruno-"Well it doesn't get any better from here. One night, A week later Our mother and father were arguing about how there was the chance that somepony from his family may have abducted him in the caverns but they were also arguing about us moving to another area of Equestria to hide us but Mom did not like the Idea and it was kind of hard for us to forget that awful night. They were arguing with each other for over 4 hours and when it looked liked things were going to get worse my father decided to leave so he could cool off and try to look for our brother one more time. He said that he would be back in a week but 2 months had gone by and he still had not come home. The worst thing was that our mother had been ill for a couple of weeks and when we asked the doctor that was near us to check her out he had told us that it was bad news. Our mother was dying and that there was no cure for her sickness and that she had this for over 3 months and that she had only a couple of days left to live but She managed to last for 2 more weeks hoping that our father and brother would come home to say goodbye, but eventually she just gave up and my sister and I just watched as she died peacefully in front of our eyes. Her last words before she died were-"

Ruby Tree-Heart(Bruno's mother)-"Please Don't blame your father for this. There was nothing he could have done even if he was here and don't worry about needing money because your father and I since before any of you were born have always put a little money aside everyday for an emergency and promise me you will take care of your sister and live your lives the way you want to live them. That would make me very very happy."

Fluttershy-"That's horrible. I'm so sorry for what you and your sister had to go through."

Bruno-"Thanks but I'm afraid what comes next is much worse. You see before I could even learn Alchemy my father decided to look and all of the books and of the 20 of them he only let me read 3 of them because he saw stuff in the rest of them that he thought would be to risky to try and so he locked them in a trunk in his bedroom closet. About 4 days after mom died I decided to have a look at those other 17 books and after a week of reading them I made 2 discoveries about all those books. The first was that they all came from Amestris because, and this is the second reason, one of the books had mentioned a form of alchemy called 'Human Transmutation' which I discovered is a form of Alchemy that is said to bring the dead back to life. It showed what was needed to perform the transmutation including the chemical ingredients needed for making a human."

Fluttershy-"Did you say bring the dead back to life? That sounds scary!"

Spike-"That sounds cool!"

Rainbow Dash-"Wait! Ingredients? What do you mean by that?"

Twilight-"I agree. This is something I'm not familiar with."

Bruno-"Actually I should explain this part. You see after reading those books I discovered that if you were to break down the structure of what the average adult human was made of on a chemical level, such as what their hair, skin, blood, flesh, bone and organs are made out of then this is what they are made up of. Water 35 liters, carbon 20 kilograms, Ammonia 4 liters, Lyme 1.5 kilograms and I'm not talking about the fruit, Phosphorus 800 grams, salt 250 grams, Saltpeter 100 grams, sulpher 80 grams, florine 7.5 grams, Iron 5 grams, silicone 3 grams and trace amounts of various other elements and that includes the last traces of protein found in their eye-lashes and in case you were wondering all of those ingredients can be bought on a foals allowance. Humans can be built cheap and I don't mean to sound so blunt about that."

Twilight-"I never knew that."

Spike-"Well how do you like that. There is something Twilight doesn't know even after all of the times she was reading those books, even for fun!"

Twilight-"Now Spike, it's not like I know everything in the world. Even I have been wrong on a lot of things in life."

Spike-"That's true."

Twilight-"Hold on! Your formula states that it's only meant for humans and not for equine. What did you do next?"

Bruno-"Well I decided to use alchemy to make a statue of a human to compare the size of the average adult human to the average size equine by standing on my back legs and I discovered that there was a slight difference in our overall size but that was a rough estimate of the size of the average human but because of that I was able to calculate and re-adjust the formula to match that of the average adult equine as close as I could so that I could use alchemy to bring our mother back to life. The next night I told my sister about my plans to resurrect our mother and she was somewhat shocked by what I said. As I prepared the ingredients I decided that to make sure that it would work properly I had no choice but to, and did this with regret, dig up our mothers remains for the transmutation. I decided to cover her under a blanket so Lyra wouldn't have to see how bad her body looks after several weeks in the ground. Then I activated the transmutation circle and so far it looked like it was going smoothly until it backfired and then something that looked like a giant eye formed in the circle and I ended up dragged into it. Thankfully I was able to keep my sister from being dragged into it too."

Twilight-"OH MY GOODNESS! Do you remember what happened afterwards?"

Bruno-"Actually yes I do remember. After being pulled into that eye from the transmutation circle I woke up and found myself in some unknown world where it was white everywhere like it was some kind of void. I wandered around for what I thought was a few days because my sense of time felt weird in that place, but overall I kept track of the time in my head and than I found several of these things that looked like giant doors and I figured that one of these doors might be the way back home and so I decided to keep looking and after what felt like almost a week I managed to find the door that brought me back home."

Fluttershy-"Well that's good to know. At least you came out of it in one piece."

Bruno-"I wish that were true Fluttershy. You see something went wrong as I tried to get through the portal. It felt like that the weird looking arms that dragged me through in the first place were pulling back in but I was able to make it back but at the cost of my entire right arm and left leg being taken from me and pulled back into the portal. After I came back I had briefly passed out from the pain but woke up to see that my sister had managed to stop the bleeding and that she was crying and telling me that something went wrong with the transmutation and when I looked at where my mother was I saw something moving but when I got a closer look I saw that it didn't even look like our mother. It looked more like a deformed mass of flesh with some of the organs and bones on the outside of the body. Lyra told me she could even see it's heart beating outside its' body."

As Spike and the others were shocked to hear of what happened Twilight ponders something that Bruno had said in his story.

Spike-"Whoa!"

Fluttershy-"That's very disturbing."

Twilight-"Hold on a second! How is it you lost your arm and leg when I can see that it looks like you never lost them. I don't see any scars on you and if you were wandering around for almost a week in that place how is it that you are even alive? You would have starved to death after at least 3 or 4 days. 5 days tops if you are lucky."

Bruno-"Actually this part you are going to find very interesting. You see while I was wondering around that void I stumbled across an unusual looking object that look like some kind of weird plant with a weird white substance in a black like bowl with green leaves surrounding it but when I touched it, it started to change shape and then- well why don't I just introduce you to my newest friend. Hey Zetsu, Come out and say hello."

As the ponies wonder who he is talking to, Fluttershy spots something green coming out of the ground.

Fluttershy-"Wha-What is that thing!

Twilight-"It looks like a giant Venus fly trap."

Rainbow Dash-"Wait something's inside it!

As the leaves open up the ponies see sticking out of the ground a pony that's black on it's right side and white on it's left side with a mane and tail that looks like it's made of some kind of grass like material.

Applejack-"What in Equestria is that weird looking thing!"

White Zetsu-"Well there's no need to be rude like that."  
Black Zetsu-"We have feelings too you know."

Fluttershy-"THAT THING CAN TALK TOO!"

Bruno-"Everypony say hello to my new friend Zetsu. He his a pony made completely out of plant life instead of flesh and bone like other ponies."

Twilight-"That's amazing! How did you find something like that?"

Bruno-"Well as I said I was wandering through the void I came across a strange looking object that looked like a black bowl with green leaves on the outside and a strange white substance inside of it and when I touched it the leaves suddenly closed and after it opened again it then took on the form of a pony and if it weren't for him I would have been dead a second time."

Twilight-"A second time?"

Bruno-"Yeah and if you thought Zetsu was a surprise then you will get a kick out of what else I saw while I was traveling in the void."

Pinkie Pie-"Oh what else did you see there? A monster with 10 heads and one body or a demon or maybe a living pony made entirely of cake frosting that had fruit for organs?"

Bruno-"Actually what I saw with my own eyes was something you might not believe. It was a human!"

They all say with shock-"A HUMAN?"

Twilight-"You're kidding? You saw an actual human in there too? What did this human look like? Was it an Amestrian?"

Bruno-"I'm not sure if it was an Amestrian considering I've never seen one but I can assure you that it was a human that I saw. In fact when I said that my life was saved a second time by Zetsu it was that human who saved my life the first time was in the void and it was that because I was starving after what felt like 5 days in there and collapsed on the ground. I felt my strength fading away until I saw the human. When got what little strength I needed to get his attention he spotted me he gave me food and water to revive me and actually he was very nice to me. As for what he looked like he was tall, had long black hair on his head, wore sunglasses, had a backpack, a small pouch on his waist and he was wearing a long black jacket and I also managed to see that he was wearing a locket around his neck and judging by what it looked like and I'm no expert in Jewelery, it looked like his locket was the kind that was made here in Equestria."

Rarity-"Equestrian jewelery on a human? How is that possible?"

Twilight-"Equestria and Amestris had always shared a lot of things with each other over the many years. I'm pretty sure that they also wore some Jewelery that was made here too and vice-versa. Wait you said that the human had a locket that was Equestrian made. That means that the human you saw was most likely from Amestris. That has to make the most sense."

Bruno-"Well You might be right Twilight. That is a strong possibility but I never asked if he was from Amestris."

Twilight-"Aw that's too bad."

Bruno-"Anyway after I regained my strength from the food he gave me we started talking for a bit and It turns out he was lost in the void and he was trying to find the door he was looking for too and he told me that the flow of time here is somewhat distorted because after I spent what felt exactly like 6 days in there because I kept count in my head it turned out that after I came back from the void Lyra told me that I was gone for 6 hours."

Twilight-"That's...um...well I have no words for what you just described."

Rainbow Dash-"What happened next?"

Bruno-"After I thanked the human for helping me he gave me some more food to keep me going. As for Zetsu's role in saving my life. After my arm and leg were ripped off when the portal opened again and he came through it. It turns out that he has this power where the white substance can be used in medicine such as to close and heal deep wounds and even replace lost limbs. Here I'll show what I mean."

Bruno uses his magic to change the surface of his right arm and left leg to the white matter that shows where his arm and leg were replaced and they were shocked beyond belief.

Rainbow Dash-"Whoa!"

Spike-"That's cool!"

Bruno-"In case you want to know how this is done. After part of his body was used to replace and heal my body the new limbs took a couple of days for it to get used to my flesh but overtime the material formed the nerves, bone, muscle tissue, blood vessels and skin needed to become fully useable for walking again and it can even be used to repair damaged internal organs too."

Twilight-"That's amazing! I had no idea that all of this could come from a failed use of alchemy. Think of the many uses in medicine this could do to help pony-kind every where!"

Black Zetsu-"We are more that happy to help anypony out but remember that we are living beings and not tools to be used on a whim."  
White Zetsu-"Oh come on now. We were released from there for a reason. I see no harm in letting them study us if it means we make their lives much better than before."

Spike-"Hold on! Did I just hear 2 different voices coming from him just now?"

Rainbow Dash-"He's right, but it looks like I can see a mouth on the white half and not the black half."

Bruno-"Yeah you can hear 2 different voices from him. Although he is physically one pony he seems to have 2 distinct personalities. One on each side."

Twilight-"I must say out of all of us you and your sister are the ones who have experienced stuff so strange and wonderful it makes what my friends and I have done look like something out of storybook. Wait! According to what you said about alchemy, you need to draw a circle to preform it and all you did was clap your hoofs to use your alchemy. Was there something in those books that made you able to do it like that?"

Bruno-"No. In fact the reason for how I can do alchemy like that is because of what happened when I tried to bring our mother back to life. When I was pulled into the portal I saw a lot of images passing me by and my head felt like it was filling up with all this information in the world I've never even known about and it happened again when I was trying to get back home. If I had to describe all the information I obtained in 2 words then I would call it 'The Truth'."

Pinkie Pie-"The truth? The truth about what or who or why or when or where?"

Bruno-"Just 'the truth' is all I can say, but before I was about to go through the door back home a strange white entity with a shadowy aura around it appeared in front of the door and it body was in the same shape as my body. As I went over to talk to it one of the doors suddenly appeared behind me and the entity revealed its' identity."

"Flashback to the void"

Entity of the void-"Well what do we have here? Judging by your body shape and wings and horn you must be a pony from Equestria and it seems you have found the right door that you have been seeking for a long time."

Bruno-"Who are you and how do you know about where I'm from?"

Entity of the void-"Oh I'm so glad you asked. Well I go by many names here. I am known as the World or the Universe or the Truth. I am all. I am one. I am God and I could even be you!"

Bruno-"God? Me? What is that supposed to mean!? Wait! Am I dead?"

Entity of the void-"Relax you're not Dead. In fact you are far from it. Besides by opening the portal you have dared to knock on the door and if you want to use that door to get back you need to pay a toll but I won't take the toll until just before you reach your destination. Til we meet again Bruno and you have a safe passage home."

"End of flashback in the void"

Bruno-"As the Door opens up, I see the eye from the transmutation circle inside it and the strange black black arms that dragged me into the void pulled me into the gate and as I passed through the portal to get home I was able to feel 'The truth' coming into my head again. After I awakened from the pain of my arm and leg getting pulled back in it was also how I figured out what went wrong with trying to bring our mother back to life. You see I had all the right components but one. It needed a soul for the dead to come back to life and that's why the transmutation had backfired."

Spike-"Why is that?"

Bruno-"It's because of what I said earlier. Alchemy is based on the law of equivalent exchange. You can't transmute a life form from a soul that no longer exists in this world. Believe me when I say I found that out the hard way."

Twilight-"How unbelievable! To think that you saw not only a human and the plant pony Zetsu you saw a being that was pretty much described as a GOD in that place. I wish I could have met that thing too."

Bruno-"Trust me Twilight. You do not want to go through all that just for seeking Knowledge like the kind I got. The toll the entity was talking about was giving up a physical part of your body. In this case my arm and leg because I saw my arm and leg breaking apart and going back into the void and for a brief second I saw my arm and leg becoming a part of the entities body too."

Spike-"Yikes. Looks like you should stick to reading books to get the knowledge you want Twilight."

Twilight-"In this case Spike you might be right."

Applejack-"OH MY! What happened after that?"

Lyra-"Yeah brother, tell them what happened next."

Bruno-"Lyra! Well you see uh-"

Lyra-"Look I know you sent me away so I don't hear what we went through to protect me, but that was over 4 years ago and though I'm still sad that our big brother, Father and Mother are gone, I've moved on past that so we can start our new lives."

Bruno-"You're right sis. I'm sorry. It's just after what happened that night it was so traumatic for you I thought that if you heard it again...well.

Lyra-"That's alright. As I said I've moved on past that and If you want to finish the rest of this then go ahead. I'll be OK with what you say next."

Bruno-"Well OK then. Anyway the deformed remains of our mother had died shortly after I came back through the portal and when I was able to walk again after Zetsu replaced my arm and leg he and I took my mother back to her grave to be re-buried and from then on I decided never to use alchemy to try and revive the dead even if I figured out how to perfect it."

Fluttershy-"That sounds like a good idea."

Bruno-"I couldn't agree with you more. Anyway, Three days later Lyra and I decided it was time that we leave our home and start new lives someplace else. After we packed up what we needed with this weird looking spell that I somehow knew, probably from passing through the portal, we decided that if we were serious about moving on we needed a reason to never come back here. So just before we left we said goodbye to our mother one last time at her grave, burned our house down to the ground and we never looked back. Ever since then we pretty much been through a lot of Equestria and after almost 4 years of traveling I thought it was time to settle down and find a new home for us."

Fluttershy-"So what made you decide to live in Ponyville?"

Bruno-"Well we thought about living in Cloudsdale but since my sister was not born with wings then it would be very hard for her to live on a cloud. We then thought about living in Canterlot but after remembering what our father told us about our families true intentions, we might run the risk of bumping into one of our relatives so we said no to the living there. However after hearing some interesting things that happened in this town I decided that this town was going to be our new home."

Rainbow Dash-"Speaking of Cloudsdale I am curious as to why your sister has no wings. I mean I know you two are brother and sister but how was it that she was born a unicorn and not an alicorn like you or your brother?"

Bruno-"Well after learning a bit about pony genetics while being home-schooled the reason for why my sister was not born an alicorn like our brother and myself is because our mother was an earth pony so the odds of one of us being born without wings were pretty slim."

Twilight-That would make the most sense."

Spike-"That's amazing! Well except for the part about trying to revive the dead and you losing your brother, mother, father, arm and leg, but everything else sounds really cool!"

AppleJack-"Tell us, during your travels around Equestria what places did you see?"

Twilight-"Yeah, I'd like to know more about anyplace interesting you and your sister have been. If that's OK?"

Bruno-"Well aside from the small towns we've been to there were some interesting sites Lyra and I saw. For example one night during a really bad storm we went to the 'Ariel ruins' for shelter."

Twilight-"The 'Ariel Ruins'? I remember reading that those ruins are so massive that it's like a small city and have been around since way before Equestria was even founded. Even Princess Celestia and anypony that ever studied it never figured out the origins of that place. That place is a real mystery even to this day."

Bruno-"Yeah I know. The next day After the storm passed while Lyra was still sleeping I decided to have a look around the ruins for myself and even after I had all that knowledge enter my brain from the failed transmutation, I was stumped about it too. In fact from what I could gather from looking around I may have realized that these ruins may not have had anything to do with this land at all. Anyway during our travels we had thought about checking out the ancient land further north of the "Crystal Empire" called 'Calima' but some kind of magic barrier prevented anypony from entering there at all."

Fluttershy-"You went to 'Calima'?"

AppleJack-"Isn't that the forbidden area?"

Pinkie Pie-"Why is it known as the forbidden area?"

Twilight-"Well if I remember from what Princess Celestia told me, she said that something from the sky had crashed there about 500 years ago and that when she went to see what it was, it was something REALLY REALLY LARGE and made of metal and all that was written on the side was a name that said "Archangel" and below the name it said 'Project SEEDS OF FAITH'. However Princess Celestia felt a strange and DARK presence coming from it and until she knew more about it she and Princes Luna placed a massive Barrier around most of Calima and deemed it the forbidden area of Equestria. She also mentioned that on that same night that something else had fallen out of the sky with it but it ended up crashing far out into the ocean and there was no reason to look for it at all since it sank in the deepest part that no one could ever get to."

Bruno-"Wow! So that's why no pony could get there. I can see why the Princess wanted to keep others away from there. Who knows what could have been inside that thing to begin with. Anyway that's pretty much everything interesting I can tell you about us. I figured we should get settled at the INN and wait until we are able to start looking for a new home."

Mayor Mare-"Yeah about that. I just found out that the Inn is fully booked until tomorrow. There are no rooms available at all. I'm sorry."

Bruno-"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE'S NO ROOMS! JUST WHERE ARE MY SISTER AND I SUPPOSED TO STAY NOW!"

Lyra-"Brother please calm down. I'm sure we will figure something out."

Applejack-"I know. Why don't you and your sister stay with us? Our place is big enough for the both of you to stay until you can find your new home."

Bruno-"Thanks and though I really appreciate the kind gesture but we couldn't impose on you and your family like that especially since we just met over an hour ago. We'll figure something out."

Applejack-"I insist and it's no trouble to us. We are more that happy to help out and you and your sister stay with us at Sweet Apple Acres and I won't take no for an answer."

Applebloom-"But sis, there's only one spare room at our place and the bed in there is not big enough for two."

AppleJack-"OH that's right! I completely forgot. Now what am I going to do?"

Applebloom-"Well there's that couch that's also in the spare room. It might be enough for one of them"

Bruno-"Well if you insist on us staying with you then you can give that bed to my sister and I'll sleep on the couch for the night. Problem solved and as a thank you for putting us up for the next 2 nights if you need me to help you out with anything just ask."

Applejack-"It's a deal."

Twilight-"I was also wondering if you get the time may I have a look at those alchemy books? I'd really like to research what it's all about."

Bruno(thinking)-"Hmm. After what Twilight said earlier I'm very interested to know why the Princess was searching for those alchemy books after the humans had vanished. It sounds like she was desperate to find those books but the question is WHY?"

Twilight-"Well Bruno?"

Bruno-"Sure but only if you can arrange for me to meet Princess Celestia sometime soon. I'm pretty sure that she would be very interested to hear about us too."

Twilight-"Consider it done. I'll write her a letter tonight and arrange for you both to meet her."

Bruno-"Thanks Twilight. If there's anyway I can repay you for this favor just ask me anytime but if you do mention to her in your letter that my sister and I are from the 'Star Pony Family' please be sure to tell her to keep that information a secret until I know for sure that any of our relatives decided to give up on searching for any of us."

Twilight-"I'll be sure to tell her that too Bruno so don't worry."

As Bruno and Lyra get settled in at Sweet Apple Acres for the night Twilight Sparkle begins to write to the princess.

Twilight-"Spike take a letter."

Twilight's letter-"Dear Princess Celestia, I'm not sure if anything in this letter has much to do with the lesson about the magic of friendship but you will get a kick out of this. Earlier today two ponies an alicorn named Bruno and his little sister a unicorn named Lyra who are both from the 'Star Pony Family' just came to Ponyville after traveling for almost 4 years through most of Equestria and faced a lot of hard times in their lives and get this, one of them can use Alchemy. It turns out that the alchemy books you were looking for ended up in their possession a few years ago and to this day Bruno is the one who has the books now. They are currently staying at the Applejack's place since the Inn here in Ponyville has no rooms available and well there's more I want to tell you about but Since I don't have much room on this letter to tell you all of the shocking and interesting things we saw today and I figured you would like to see it for yourself because Bruno asked that he meet with you as soon as you get any free time and that you keep the truth about his connection to the 'Star Pony Family' a secret from Canterlot. He will tell you the reason why. Anyway I have a good feeling that Bruno and his sister will fit in just fine here in Ponyville and I will be sure to do my part to make them feel welcome. Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle"

Spike breathes his green fire on the letter and sends it to the Princess.

Spike-"Wow Twilight. I'm sure that when Princess Celestia reads your letter that mentions Alchemy she will fly out so fast that she might make dozens of sonic-rainbooms on the way here and that might make Rainbow Dash so shocked her jaw might fall off."

Twilight-"Oh Spike. I'm sure that she will be eager to see Bruno's Alchemy but she also has responsibilities to the rest of Equestria now come on let's get some sleep. Good night Spike."

Spike(while yawning)-"Night Twilight."

Meanwhile in the middle of the night at the Salt Lick Flats of the Haystack Desert way out west of Ponyville, the Trio of Manticores begin to question a pair of ponies that were camping out in the flats about the Elements of Harmony by holding them by their throat.

Lead manticore-"I'll ask you one more time. Where are the Elements of Harmony located and who wields them? Answer me or you will both DIE!"

Rocky(Pony being chocked)-"All I know is that the ones who hold the Elements of Harmony are a group of ponies that recently defeated Discord and that they currently reside in Ponyville, but that's 3 days away from here even if you fly nonstop and also I heard that Discord was released from his stone prison a while back and now he uses his magic with Princess Celestia to help out Equestria these days. I swear that's all I know. Please let us go!"

Lead manticore-"Very well."

As he releases them he gives the other 2 manticores with him an order.

Lead manticore-"KILL THEM!"

Other manticores-"Yes sir!

Sierra(other Pony that was choked)-"But you said that if we answered you that you would let us live?"

Lead manticore(now speaking with a demonic voice)-"Yeah well-"(Picture the scene shifting to the unknown figure from a nearby location that is speaking through the manticore)-Unknown Figure-"I lied!"

The other two manticores kill the two ponies by impaling them through their chests with the tip of their scorpion tails. Then they fly off.

Unknown Figure-"So Ponyville huh. I guess Celestia and Luna found others that are now able to wield the Elements of Harmony. Now this means I have no reason to hold back at all. I'm that much closer to becoming a god. Hmm. I sense the presence of someone other than myself who can use Alchemy and from what I can tell this one had also opened the 'Portal of truth' too. It seems to have gotten a bit more interesting. I'll have to look into it soon."

As he walks away a storm appears over where the unknown figure is and a flash of lightning reveals his face and that he's (adding another flash of lighting for dramatic effect) a HUMAN!

Ending notes of chapter 1

Who is this unknown human and how does he know about the "Elements of harmony"?  
Is he an Amestrian or is he something entirely different?


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2- The approaching Darkness!

Over the two days that Bruno and Lyra were staying with The apple family he repaid them by helping them with the work on their farm and Bruno decided to use he alchemy to make their lives a lot better.

One day he gathered as many scraps of wood and metal he could find then he used Alchemy to restore their barn, house, and the tools that they use in the fields and that includes the plow that Big Macintosh uses in the fields and they were grateful for their help.

Applejack-"Thanks again Bruno. I'm really not into using magic on my farm but aside from all that I'm glad you made things for me and my family much better and I'm very grateful for your help on my farm and you and your sister are welcome to stay as long as you need to until you two can find a place to live."

Bruno-"I'm happy to help and for the record Alchemy is not magic, it's science and since there's no magic involved in it then it doesn't break the 'no magic Rule' you have for your farm. Am I right Big Mac?"

Big Macintosh-"Eeyup."

Applejack-"Well I never said that magic was not allowed on my farm but the thing is we would rather be doing the work without magic and that we only use magic from others as a last resort in the even we really need the extra help. Right Big Mac?"

Big Macintosh-"Eeyup."

Bruno-"Well magic or not help is still help and I'm happy to help you all out for giving my sister and I a place to stay. Thank you."

Meanwhile in town Twilight Sparkle finally gets a response from Princess Celestia and goes to Sweet Apple Acres to inform Bruno about it.

Twilight-"Bruno I just got a letter from Princess Celestia just a few minutes ago and from what I read of it you might like what she says."

Bruno-"Oh really? What does it say?"

Twilight(Reading Celestia's letter)-"Dear Twilight, First I want to say that I was very shocked from what you said in your letter about somepony being able to use alchemy and even more surprising that it was someone from the 'Star Pony Family' and don't worry I kept their connection to that family a secret. I will be arriving in Ponyville tomorrow so I can meet them and for the record, the letters you and your friends write to me don't always have to be about the magic of friendship. You all can write me anything that any of you want as long as it's something good and believe me that what you said in your last letter to me was very good. Keep up the good work Twilight. Your friend, Princess Celestia"

Bruno-"Wow I guess she is eager to meet us and tomorrow sounds perfect. In fact Lyra and I are going to look for a new place to live today."

Twilight-"That's great! Homer is really good at finding homes for anypony here in Ponyville and you are in good hooves with him. If you want my friends and I can help you out with that task."

Bruno-"That very nice of you but I'm not sure what you and your friends can do to help us out."

As Bruno, Lyra and the others go to see Homer at his place they scroll through a book that shows what homes are available in Ponyville and There were a lot of selections to choose from.

Homer-"Here's my portfolio of all the houses in Ponyville. The ones with a green check-mark are ones that are for sale and the yellow check marks are ones that need some interior work but the red ones are ones that are meant to be torn down for building new ones, unless you just want to buy the land it's on. Feel free to look as long as you want and the prices are very reasonable."

As Bruno and Lyra read the book of homes for sale Bruno spots one that might suit him and his sisters needs but there's a catch.

Bruno-"What about this one here and why does it have a black X in front of it and How come the price was reduced by that much?"

Homer-"Well it's hard to explain. You see the house is really big and it's for sale and it's on a somewhat large amount of land, but the house has some problems with it."

Pinkie Pie-"Oh oh is it haunted?"

Homer-"The thing is aside from the major interior work that needs to be done the other thing is that a relative of one of the owners that lived there died in that house and after it was left to the owners in their will they then decided to sell it since they could not afford to keep it and the current price you see in that book is how low they're willing to sell it for so that they can make a profit from it."

Twilight-"Someone died in that house? How horrible."

Homer-"If it makes you feel better the one who died there went peacefully and felt no pain."

Rarity-"Well that does sound a bit better but, You aren't considering buying that house are you Bruno? That place is a dump!"

Bruno-"Can you take us to it. I'd like to see it for my self."

Homer-"Really? Well OK then. Just follow me and we'll be there soon."

Lyra-"Why do you want to see that house brother? There were a bunch of others that were much nicer than that one."

Twilight-"I agree. Just what do you hope to find there?"

Bruno-"I've got a hunch about that place. Trust me on this."

As Homer shows Bruno and Lyra the house, Bruno decides to have a look around for himself.

Bruno-"Hmm-Well it's going to need some major work but that's not a problem for me."

Rarity-"What do you mean? This place looks really awful."

Bruno-"Well on the outside but after looking inside I can tell that the plumbing works just fine and the major support beams and frames are structurally intact. This house won't fall apart for many years to come. How much is it again?"

Homer-"Well its' original price was 10,000 bits but it's now at 3,500 bits but it will cost you almost the same original price to have all the work done on it."

Bruno-"No problem. We'll take it! In fact I'll pay you right now."

Homer-"Really? I didn't think anypony wanted this house."

Bruno-"Well I like it anyway. Oh Twilight do you remember how I told you I knew a weird packing spell that I used to pack all our stuff from our old home?"

Twilight-"Yeah I do. why?"

Bruno-"Well prepare to be amazed. Everypony please pay attention to my right eye."

Bruno's right pupil opens up and a vortex is shown and all the stuff he had taken with him from his old home came out and Twilight, Rarity and Pinkie Pie were very shocked at this new power of his.

Rarity-"What was that and how did you do that?"

Twilight-"I agree. Did you learn that power from the portal?"

Bruno-"In a sense yes I did and as for how it works I'll tell you. What it does is that anything I want in there is sucked up into the vortex that resides in my right eye and is transported to a pocket dimension that exists within my body and in there is an infinite amount of space. I can even use it to capture anyone. For those who are evil it's an inescapable prison and for others it's also the safest place in existence. It's also what I used to pack all the stuff needed for our travels to find our new home. Speaking of which. Here is your 3,500 bits for the house and tell the former owners of this place that I'll take good care of it."

Homer-"YES SIR! Also I'll bring the keys to your new house later today."

Rarity-"You're really going to live here?"

Bruno-"Yes Rarity and I'm surprised that you haven't figured out why I picked this house from the start."

Rarity-"Why is that?"

Twilight-"OH I see what you are going to do now. You're going to use your Alchemy to restore the house inside and out and That's why you got this place so cheap. Right?"

Bruno-"That's right."

Rarity-"Oh you are one clever and sneaky guy. You planned this didn't you?"

Bruno-"You got it but it will take me some time to go through and restore it room by room and also the reason I also bought this was because I noticed that it was on a large amount of land and is big enough for me to build my own laboratory nearby so I can do my research in Magic and Alchemy. Which reminds me, Here are the Alchemy books I promised that you can read Twilight. Just promise me that you won't do anything reckless with it. OK?"

Twilight-"Thanks and I promise to be very careful with them."

Pinkie Pie-"How long will it take for you to repair the whole place?"

Bruno-"Well from its' size and the many rooms. It will take at least 2 or 3 days for me to finish it."

Lyra-"Two days! Where are we supposed to stay til then?"

Bruno-"Well I'll ask Applejack if you can stay with them a little longer. I'm sure that she won't mind. As for me I'll be working on the house and if I need a place to sleep I'll just setup my bed in the house for me to sleep in til its' finished."

Lyra-"Well OK then."

Twilight-"Is there anything we can do to help you out? It may make things go a bit faster for you."

Bruno-"Thanks but I can handle the work myself but I'll keep that idea in mind just in case."

As Bruno begins working on the house through the night and Lyra gets settled for bed, Twilight begins reading the Alchemy books that he gave him and is quite Amazed at how it's done and decides to try it for herself but is unable to do it properly but she keeps trying.

Meanwhile the Manticore trio continues to fly towards Ponyville and they are a day away.

The next day.

Twilight goes to Bruno's house to remind him bout Princess Celestia's arrival to Ponyville.

Twilight-"Bruno wake up! Princess Celestia will be arriving in Ponyville in an hour."

Bruno-"Really but I'm filthy from the work I did all night I need a bath like now!"

Twilight-"Well you can use the one at my place if you want but you need to be quick about doing that at this time."

Bruno-"Thanks and I'll be fast with it. By the way did she say where she wanted to meet?"

Twilight-"I told her to meet at my place."

Bruno-"Oh, Well you see I was going to meet Lyra at Sugar Cube Corner for some breakfast after I get cleaned up. Do you think you ask the princess to come there after she comes to your place instead?

Twilight-"No problem Bruno."

After Bruno finishes getting cleaned up he goes to Sugar Cube Corner to meet Lyra for breakfast and Twilight waits outside her place to watch as Princess Celestia arrive in Ponyville.

Twilight-"Princess Celestia, It's nice to see you again. How have you been these days?"

Celestia-"I've been doing fine Twilight. Now where are the ponies that you mentioned in your letter? I'm very eager to meet them."

Twilight-"He and his sister are over at "Sugar Cube Corner" but there's something that's been bothering me."

Celestia-"What is it Twilight?"

Twilight-"Why is it that you were so eager to find those alchemy books after the humans vanished? Bruno told me that he thought it was weird that you were desperate to get them. Why is that?"

Princess Celestia-"I think you deserve to know why but I'll tell you and Bruno the reason after he and I get to know each other better. First I want to hear more about their journey and see his use of alchemy."

As Twilight and Princess Celestia arrive at the Cafe she introduces them to each other."

Bruno-"It's nice to finally meet you face to face Princess. I take it that you were shocked to hear of my use of alchemy?"

Princess Celestia-"Yes I was and I was wondering if you could show it to me first before we talk about you and your sisters past?"

Bruno-"Sure."

Bruno shows off his alchemy to the princess by breaking the table into many pieces. Then he claps his hooves and begins to repair the table and after seeing it with her own eyes, Princess Celestia is very impressed with what she saw.

Princess Celestia-"That was amazing Bruno, But when I saw the humans use Alchemy they had to draw a circle for it. How is it that you can do that by clapping your hooves together and is there anyway I can check out those Alchemy books you got anytime soon?"

Bruno-"Well Twilight is currently reading those books and with all do respect Princess I'd feel better if those books would remain with me. I don't want any other pony to attempt to try a certain form of alchemy that can really do some serious damage or even death to another pony and I don't want their blood on my hooves."

Princess Celestia-"Why is that Bruno? You know I would never put another pony in any danger like that."

Bruno-"I do believe you on that but you see the reason as to why I can use alchemy without a circle is also why I would rather hold on to those books and you will know why."

Bruno tells Princess Celestia all about what happened in his life. The Alchemy books arriving to his family, his brother disappearing, his father leaving, their mother dying, him using alchemy to try to revive his mother along with the results of it going wrong, being pulled into the voided world and meeting the Entity of the void, the human and Zetsu, his injuries from returning from the void, the form of what his mother looked like from the failed transmutation, him and Lyra burning down their house and going on their journey through Equestria and ending up in Ponyville. After hearing all of that She was shocked beyond imagination but something that Bruno said about the human in the void caught her attention.

Princess Celestia-"WOW! I must say that you and your sister have been through a lot in your lives and I'm sorry for all the bad things that happened to you two. By the way the human you saw in the void, can you please tell me what he looked like. I need to know if it might be a survivor from Amestris."

Bruno-"Sure I have a photographic memory when it comes to remembering anything. Let's see I remember that he was really nice, was tall, had long black hair, wore sunglasses and he was wearing a long black coat, had a backpack, had a pouch around his waist and what else, Oh yeah he also had a locket around his neck too."

Princess Celestia-"Did you say a locket? What did this locket look like?"

Bruno-"Well it was surely Equestrian made and it's shape was some what Hexagonal and it's outer surface was made of gold and the front of it was made of 3 different materials. Two halves were made of Unicorn horn fragments each one a different color and it's center had a chrome diamond on it. Why do you ask?"

Princess Celestia(thinking)-"Wait! Could it be him? No it's not possible unless after 25 years he finally managed to harness the magic that was in the locket, but if he did then that means there's a chance he can return here. Sonny, Are you trying to come back here?"

Twilight-"Princess, What are you thinking about? That look on your face when Bruno mentioned the locket on the human makes me think that you might know who the human in the void was. Am I right? Hello Earth to Princess Celestia."

Princess Celestia-"Huh What! Oh Twilight I'm sorry for drifting off like that. You see It's the locket that Bruno mentioned a minute ago. I remember giving that locket to a very special human I met a long time ago and he was always the kindest human in existence and he always had a smile on his face. The locket just brought back some very good memories for me that's all. Now as for the alchemy books. I don't see any harm in letting you and Bruno keep them for now and as for why I was looking for them in the first place well I remember reading a section in one of those books about an object called 'The Philosopher's Stone'."

Twilight-"The Philosopher's Stone? I've never heard of that."

Bruno-"Wait I remember reading that in one of the books. It's said that the stone can amplify the use of both Alchemy and Magic and it can be used to heal any wound with magic or Alchemy and when it's used it glows with a red light to show off its' power but it's unclear on how it's even made. Is that why you were after these books in the first place Princess?"

Princess Celestia-"Yes. I thought that if I figured out how to make the stone then I can use it's power to help better everyone who lives in Equestria."

Bruno-"Well I remember seeing a book with an image of a red stone on the cover and was written in a weird language that looked somewhat familiar."

Twilight-"Bruno, Is this the book you are talking about?"

Bruno-"Yeah that's the one I was...Hold on a sec Now I remember where I saw that language. It's the same language I saw inscribed in the 'Ariel Ruins'."

Princess Celestia-"Did you say the Ariel Ruins?"

Twilight-"How is that possible? No pony in all of Equestria could ever figure out the origins of those ruins for as long as they have been studying them and now after all this time we are holding a rare piece of evidence that has any connection to those ruins. This is so exciting! Bruno do you think you can translate this language?"

Bruno-"I'm not sure if I can. All I said was that I recognize the books language from the ruins but as for De-cyphering it that may be a challenge even after gaining 'the truth' from passing through the portal. However I now remember seeing something strange in those ruins. Inside what looked liked a temple near the center of the ruins I saw a strange marking in a stone wall which closely resembled the transmutation circle I used when I tried to resurrect my mother. After all that I then concluded that there's a chance that Alchemy may have originated there and not in Amestris."

Twilight-"This can't be right! Are you 100% positive about this Bruno because if what you said is true then this could re-write the some of the history of Amestris and possibly Equestria."

Bruno-"I'm not sure it's 100% but I know for sure that what I saw in those ruins does match up with what I saw in one of those books without a doubt."

Princess Celestia-"Well the two of you take as much time as you need and if any of you need help from the library in Canterlot then feel free to drop by at anytime."

Bruno-"Thank you Princess. We will keep that idea in mind, but there might be a chance that the Amestrians may have gathered some information on these ruins in the event they did visit them. I know Twilight mentioned that Amestris was off limits because of what happened 1500 years ago but is there any chance you would allow anypony to go to any of the libraries in Amestris to see if they might have what we need to De-cypher these notes? I mean it's not like the danger from what happened to the humans is still there after 1500 years, Right?"

Princess Celestia-"You do have a good point but I still don't want to put anypony in danger just in case, but I'll arrange for you and a couple of my Guards to accompany you to Amestris in the near future, but before you go there I'll personally go back there to check things out and if I don't sense anything unusual there then you will be cleared to go."

Lyra-"Princess. This guard has been looking for you. He says it's urgent."

Royal guard-"Princess, do you remember the expedition team you hired to survey the Great Salt lick flats a few days ago?"

Princess Celestia-"Rocky and his wife Sierra. Yes I do. Why do you ask?"

Royal guard-"Well I'm afraid I have some bad news. We sent out one of the other guards to check on them so they could give their progress report and the guards found them about 2 hours ago and I regret to tell you that...they're dead."

After Celestia, Twilight, Lyra and Bruno heard what the guard said they were horrified beyond imagination.

Princess Celestia-"DEAD? What happened to them!"

Royal guard-"According to the report given to us by one of the survivors, Rocky's little sister Sandy, She says they were attacked about 3 nights ago by a trio of manticores. The manticores had killed them by stabbing them in their chests with the stingers on their tails."

Princess Celestia-"Oh my goodness! How can that be?"

Twilight-"That's not possible. Even though the relationship between the manticores and ponies has always been dicey over the many years but there has not been any reason for them to just attack us out of nowhere like that."

Princess Celestia-"I agree Twilight. Something about this just doesn't feel right."

Bruno-"Hold on! Did you say that one of the ponies was named Rocky and did he have a light brown coat with a sky blue mane and tail?

Royal Guard-"Yes but how did you know what he looked like?"

Princess Celestia-"Did you know him?"

Bruno-"Yes I do remember him. He was a friend of my older brother Vince and the one that traveled with him to hoof caverns the day my brother vanished. I can't believe that he's dead and I had no idea he was married too!"

Twilight-"I'm so sorry you lost one of your friends like that."

Royal Guard-"Twilight Sparkle is it? I'm glad you are here too because this attack also has something to do with you and your friends too."

Twilight-"With me? What do you mean?"

Royal guard-"When we questioned the survivor she overheard the manticores were asking them about the Elements of Harmony and who wields them. I'm thinking that they're on their way here to Ponyville."

Twilight-"What would they want with the Elements of Harmony? It's not like they can use them. This doesn't make any sense. I'll get my friends and the elements and well take care of them."

Royal guard-"I'd rather not take any chances. We need to take you and your friends someplace safe until we can handle them. Now!"

As Twilight is about to get her friends and go with the guards Lyra and Bruno sense the manticores are closer than they appear.

Lyra-"Brother!"

Bruno-"Yeah Sis. I sense it too. EVERYPONY GET DOWN!"

The 3 Manticores suddenly appear behind Twilight and as they are just about to attack her, Lyra at the last second jumps toward Twilight and pushes her out of they way.

Lyra-"Whoa that was too close! Are you OK Twilight?"

Twilight-"Yeah I'm OK. Thanks for the assist Lyra."

Lead manticore:"Damn I missed her."

Princess Celestia-"You three, I demand to know why you would kill 2 innocent ponies like that and why are you three after the Elements of Harmony! What purpose do you have for wanting them that you would sink so low as to murder others in your path!?"

Lead Manticore-"What difference does it make as to why we did that. All we were told to do is seek out the ones who wield the Elements of Harmony and unless that it was you Princess who still uses them then we were told to kill who ever else wields them."

Princess Celestia-"By whom were You were told do that? Who is it that sent you? I order you to tell me NOW!"

Lead manticore-"Like I said does it really matter? All we want is the Elements and if you won't hand them over we may just have to take a few more lives to get what we want but if it makes you feel better, those other two ponies we killed did not suffer one bit."

Princess Celestia-"How dare you! I'll use this spell to banish you from Equestria forever and you will never be able to return ever again!"

Lead Manticore-"Do your worst!"

Princess Celestia then fires her spell at the manticores and as the magic is blasted at them the ponies are shocked to see that it had no effect on them.

Princess Celestia-"Why didn't it work? I thought that spell was full-proof?"

Bruno-"Hold on a sec. Take a good look at them."

Princess Celestia-"What is it?"

Bruno-"Don't you notice anything strange about them?"

Princess Celestia-"What do you mean by that?"

Bruno-"Take a closer look at their eyes. Do they look somewhat off to you?"

Twilight-"He's right. Their Eyes don't usually glow red like that . Not to mention that they're a bit larger than they should be and their voice does not sound right at all."

Bruno-"Lyra are you up to fighting them?"

Lyra-"Do you even have to ask. I've been eager to show off my strength since we got here and now is the perfect time to kick their butts!"

Princess Celestia-"You two plan on fighting them on your own?"

Twilight-"That's crazy!"

Lyra-"Then call us crazy! Let's go brother!"

Bruno-"You got it!"

Lead Manticore-"Bring it on!"

Unknown human(from a nearby location)-"let's see what these two have to offer for my own amusement and it seems that the blonde haired pony named Bruno is the one that also opened the 'Portal of truth' with his Alchemy unlike the other one I sensed that night. He might prove to be a useful pawn for my plans to gain the power that I desire."

Ending notes of chapter 2

Do Bruno and Lyra actually have the Strength to take on the three Manticores to protect Ponyville, their new friends and the Princess and what is the unknown humans true objective while he's in Equestria?


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3-Shooting Star Pony Brawl and the Wandering demon's Desire!

The fight begins As Bruno and Lyra and two of the manticores run towards each other and Lyra runs behind Bruno as he casts a flash spell in front of him to blind the manticores but it was also a teleportation spell that when he vanished Lyra came speeding in and from underneath one of the manticores landed a powerful punch to his jaw from below sending him into the air and as the other manticore is about to attack her with his tail she jumps and does a high speed summer-salt in mid air and lands a powerful kick down the side of his head leaving a big gash on the side of his face and after Twilight and her friends witness her skills they realize that she is no ordinary pony. Meanwhile Bruno decides to go after the lead manticore he notices that the tip of his tail took on the form of a double-edged axe and as the manticore begins to attack with it the ponies notice that as the axe-tail is about to hit him they witness another new power of his that will shock them as they see the tail pass through his head like his body was the same as a ghost and as tail passes through his body and then through his right arm he then uses the white material to change his right hoof into a hand as he grabs the tail and prepares to use the vortex in his right eye to drag the lead manticore into his body.

Bruno-"Leave them alone. You're my opponent now and it's over for you!"

Bruno at that point then opens the vortex in his right eye and as the manticore is being dragged in the manticore suddenly disappears before he gets completely sucked in and is just gone.

Twilight-"Where did he go? Did he get sucked in to your eye?"

Bruno-"No. He somehow teleported just before I could get him."

Twilight-"How can that be? It takes magic to teleport and manticores can't use magic at all. Can you explain that Bruno?"

Bruno-"I'm not sure how he did that but I can still sense his presence and he's nearby and also that his power is a bit stronger than the other two. So you and your friends keep your guard up at all times and when he appears again I'll be sure drag him in the instant we make contact and in the meantime I'll assist Lyra with the other two."

Applejack-"I just saw what your sister did to those other two manticores and while I'm very impressed I just have to ask. How can she be that strong for her size and age?"

Bruno-"Well if you must know our mother was freakishly strong and really fast for an earth pony and so far Lyra was the only one of us who had inherited that trait from our mother but as for how we know how to fight like that we met this alicorn during our travels and she taught us not only how to fight but she also taught us magic spells and how to take our magical powers to the next level and judging by the magic we saw her do it looked like she was even more skilled than Princess Celestia."

Twilight-"That can't be possible. No Alicorn can be more powerful than the princess."

Bruno-"Can we talk about this later? Now doesn't seem like the time to be asking 20 questions during a battle."

Lyra-"Brother look at the manticores face! The wound I inflicted on his face is healing!"

Bruno-"What?"

The ponies notice that the wound in the manticores fast is rapidly healing with some kind of weird red light discharging from it's face and the other manticore's body is also showing the same kind of red discharge and suddenly the manticores are healed and ready to fight again, but Bruno notices something weird about the way that the manticores facial wound had healed like it looked familiar!

Bruno-"Sis did you notice the way the facial wound healed?"

Lyra-"I did. Those markings that I saw as the wound was healing. It's alchemy isn't it brother?"

Twilight-"Did you say Alchemy!" How can that be? I thought that you were the only one in Equestria who could use alchemy?"

Bruno-"I thought that too and judging by what we just saw it looks like alchemy without a doubt, but I never saw a form of alchemy that could heal wounds like that or have their tails change shape like that but from the discharge of red light I just saw it looks like that there's a chance that there's a Philosopher's Stone inside them and that's why there wounds healed like they did. I also sensed a dark and twisted power coming from inside their bodies."

Twilight-"What does all that mean?"

Bruno-"It means that those stones were put inside them and that their being controlled by someone else. Which also means that the puppet master controlling their bodies is the one responsible for killing Rocky and his wife and not the manticores and I'm willing to bet that the manticores have no memory of what's been going on even up to this point."

Princess Celestia-"Are you sure about that Bruno?"

Bruno-"Yeah, but in order to be 100% sure about that I have no choice but to capture them and use my magic to look into their memories to see who is the one behind this. They a least might have a memory of the one who did this to them."

Twilight-"What about the other one that got away from you?"

Bruno-"If my hunch is correct he might show up when and if the other two are taken down and that's when I'll use my right eye to suck him in. The only problem is that I need to be really quick when I need to use my right eye otherwise they might teleport like the other one did before. Lyra, I need your help so get ready to fight again."

Lyra-"I'm ready when you are brother. Let's get them!"

As Bruno and Lyra run towards the 2 manticores they begin to fight them and as Bruno jumps into the air to attack from above but it was just a ruse as he disappears into the ground and as the manticore is stunned by that action Lyra lands a powerful kick to the manticores gut leaving him incapacitated and as he grabs his gut in pain Bruno comes out of the ground behind the manticore and uses his right eye to suck him into his body but as the manticore is almost sucked in, at the last second he turned the tip of his tail into a spear coated with poison and stabs Bruno through his right arm leaving it numb for any further use."

Lyra-"Brother your arm!"

Bruno-"Don't worry Sis. At least I managed to get one of them and there's only two left."

Lyra-"No I mean look at your arm you moron!"

Bruno-"What do you mean?"

Applejack-"It looks like it's melting you idiot!"

Bruno-"Huh? Wait! What's going on!?"

Other manticore-"That stinger was coated with a powerful poison and it can dissolve anything on contact including your arm and soon your entire body along with it!"

Bruno-"Then it's a good thing that it was my right arm and not any other part of my body. For those of you ponies with weak stomachs please look away."

Bruno then uses his magic to form a hand out of magical energy around his left hoof and rips off his right arm before the poison reaches the rest of his body and after he rips it off the other ponies very disturbed by that action.

Rarity-"Did everypony just see that?"

Fluttershy-"I think I'm going to be sick."

Twilight-"My goodness Bruno! Didn't that hurt you?"

Spike-"He ripped his own arm off and is still up on his feet. How is it he did not pass out from the pain like that?"

Bruno-"You better believe it hurt but I'll be OK with the pain."

Bruno then takes his severed arm and throws it at the other manticore but then dodges it and notices that Bruno just disappeared.

Bruno-"Looking for me?"

Second manticore-"What the..."

Bruno-"Now you're mine!"

Bruno then shows up from underground and pops up in front of the manticore and then uses his right eye to suck the other manticore into his body and is finally captured.

Rainbow Dash-"Alright you got him!"

Twilight-"Now there's only one left but can you still fight in your condition? Look at you. You're still bleeding!"

Bruno-"Yeah I can still fight which reminds me. Sis come over here and heal me fast!"

Lyra-"No problem brother."

Twilight-"Heal you? Like with magic?"

Bruno-"Sort of like magic."

The ponies witness a green aura coming from Lyra's hooves as she heals her brother's wound.

Rarity-"What is that?"

Bruno-"I should have mentioned this earlier. My sister has a healing power that is in no way magic but something that I can only guess was passed down from our mother the day Lyra was born. This power can only heal open wounds, broken bones and stop bleeding. It can't repair my lost arm. It was also the same power that she used on me to stop the bleeding from when I came back from the void after losing my arm and leg."

Twilight-"That's amazing, but if it's not magic then what is it? Alchemy?"

Bruno-"I'm not sure myself. I know what we received from our father when we were all born because of what we know about our fathers family history, but for some reason our mother never told us anything about her side of the family. I wonder why?"

Lyra-"I'm done brother. I managed to stop the bleeding but you still need Zetsu to replace your arm when we are finished with the other manticore."

Bruno-"No problem sis. He's always nearby when I need him. Now let's get back to capturing the remaining manticore."

Unknown human(From nearby location)-"It seems that pony is much tougher than I thought and I'm unable to feel the connection to the other two manticores. I'd rather not risk losing another pawn which means I'll have to cut my fun a bit short for now."

Twilight-"Can you tell where the last Manticore is Bruno?"

Bruno-"I can sense that he's close by. Give me a second to pinpoint his location."

Rainbow Dash-"There's no need, There he is!"

The last Manticore appears from behind a large tree.

Lyra-"Let's get him brother!"

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"There's no need for that. I've already gathered enough information from this fight."

Bruno-"What the...?"

Spike-"Did his voice just change?"

Fluttershy-"Yeah It sounds different than before."

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"I see that you've noticed. I must say that you ponies are some what predictable but I never expected to see the two of you fight like that and with such special powers. Let me ask you this. Did you gain those powers from the portal of truth?"

Bruno-"What did you just say? How do you know about that? TELL ME!"

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"Let's just say that you weren't the only one who has passed through the portal of truth before and you managed to figure out the truth about the manticores earlier."

Bruno-"You mean...?"

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"That's right. They're just puppets and I've been using them this entire time. In fact I'm not only using my voice to speak to you all through him I can also see you through his eyes as if they were my own."

Twilight-"You're the one that's been controlling them?"

Princess Celestia-"So you are the one who has caused all the problems to this point. Who are you? I demand an answer right now!"

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"Well well Princess Celestia. I must say that it's nice to see you again after such a long time. Tell me, how have you and your sister Luna been doing these days?"

Princess Celestia-"Wait? Have we met before?"

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"Well let's just say that the last time I saw your pretty face it was a very long time ago."

Princess Celestia-"What are you talking about?"

Twilight-"I have a question for you. Why are you searching for the Elements of Harmony? It's not like you can use them. What purpose is it that you want them so badly that you would resort to killing others to get them?"

Bruno-"Hold on Twilight I want to ask him something too. Why did those manticores have Philosopher's Stones inside of them? Do you know how to make them?"

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"So you're Twilight Sparkle. You represent the element of Magic and I take it that the other five over there are the holders of Laughter, Kindness, Loyalty, Honesty and Generosity. It's an honor to meet the new holders of the Elements of Harmony."

Rainbow Dash-"So you know who we are. Big deal!"

Applejack-"There's no surprise to that Rainbow. Everyone in Equestria knows who the elements are these days."

Pinkie Pie-"Why don't you tell us who you are you big meanie!"

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"In do time you will know who I really am and to answer your question Bruno I'm in fact in possession of a Philosopher's Stone but if you want to know how to make it...Well you'll have to figure that out for yourself. Now to answer your question Twilight and others that are listening but I'll give you the short version for now. It's not just the elements that I'm after. I seek to add whatever other sources of great power that are here in Equestria and add them to my own by absorbing them into my body. Basically I want to become a god!"

Princess Celestia-"Did you say a GOD?"

Twilight-"That's impossible. No one can become a god no matter how hard they try."

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"That's what you think Twilight."

Twilight-"What do you mean by that?"

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"For as long as I've been alive I've been getting the knowledge from here and the portal of truth about seeking absolute perfection and the means to obtain it and thanks to a certain eclipse from over 1500 years ago I'm that much closer to getting what I really desire. Oh I should be thanking you Celestia and your sister Luna for that instead."

Princess Celestia-"What did you just say?"

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"Well let's just say you had no idea of what really did happen that night and that I have the answer to that for another time. Besides I'm getting bored now so I'll be taking my leave but since your friends gave me some amusement with that fight he and his sister did with the other two manticores I'll be nice and not do any more harm to any others while I'm here in Equestria so all of you can relax for the time being but I'll be taking this manticores body and add him to my power."

Applejack-"What's he doing now?"

The manticore then begins to use his tail and rapidly carves something into the ground that Bruno recognizes as something he's seen before.

Bruno-"Is that what I think it is?"

Twilight-"What is that?"

Bruno-"Wait! That's a transmutation circle and it's the one used for human transmutation!"

Twilight-"The same one you used to try and revive your mother?"

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"Oh so that's what you did to open the portal of truth. Well it's also used for a couple of other things but I'll reveal that to you another time. Until we meet again."

Bruno-"EVERYPONY MOVE AWAY FROM THAT CIRCLE NOW! You don't want to get caught in that when it's activated!"

As the ponies back away, the manticore slams his paw on the circle and activates it and the ponies witness what it's like as the EYE opens up and drags the manticore into it.

Unknown Human(speaking through Manticore)-"Til we meet again."

Twilight-"He's gone, but is it over?"

Bruno-"I think what just happened may only be the beginning."

Pinkie Pie-"Well that guy was a big meanie!"

Applejack-"Meanie is an understatement Pinkie."

Princess Celestia(thinking)-"Was it mine and Luna's Eclipse that caused the humans to vanish and is there a chance that he knows about the two of us going to the other world? Wait, Is there a chance that he knows about 'HIM' too?"

Twilight-"Princess Celestia are you OK? You look scared. Did he say something else to upset you like that?"

Princess Celestia-"I'm OK Twilight and he did mention something that may have made me uneasy."

Fluttershy-"What did he say?

Princess Celestia-"He said that he was thankful for a certain eclipse for helping him further his goal to becoming a God."

Applejack-"Eclipse? What eclipse is he talking about?"

Twilight-"Are you talking about the Lunar Eclipse from 1500 years ago?"

Princess Celestia-"I think he's saying that I may have been responsible for the humans disappearing that night."

Twilight-"Don't you listen to what he says Princess!"

Applejack-"I think he's trying to mess with your head by saying those nasty things."

Princess Celestia-"You may be right, but I still need to know more about what he said earlier and we need to find him to do that."

Applejack-"True but we still don't know who is really behind all of this."

Bruno-"I think I may have a way to figure out who it may be."

Princess Celestia-"How will you be able to pull that off?"

Twilight-"I agree. What idea do you have in mind?"

Bruno-"Actually the plan is already in progress as we speak. You see I knew that they were being controlled by someone else so as I sucked them into my eye I cast a spell that will either remove or suppress what ever power is inside them but the only down side is that it will take about 3 to 4 days for it to work but when it's time I will release them from the dimension in my eye and we will be able to ask them who is behind this and the true identity of the puppet master will be revealed. Pretty clever don't you think?"

Twilight-"That's amazing!"

Lyra-"My brother is full of surprises!"

Bruno-"Princess Celestia. I was wondering that if my spell does free the manticores from the power that controlled them in the first place what will you do to them? They were never really killers in the first place. It was that creep who pretty much did all of the work."

Princess Celestia-"That's a tough call to make. I'm afraid that if I lock them up for what happened it might make the other manticores that live in Equestria think that it's an act against them and if I don't then Rocky and Sierra's families think I'm too lenient to let their killers go free like that. Best I can do is explain to Rocky and Sierra's families about what happened today and hope that they can at least forgive the manticores for what happened to them but that however might be tough to handle."

Twilight-"Princess. All of us were witnesses to what happened today. If we backed you up as you tell the families they might be willing to forgive them."

Princess Celestia-"I think you and your friends helping me with this matter may go a lot easier for them. Anyway I must get back to Canterlot and arrange for Rocky and Sierra's funeral. Since they were working for me I'll be sure to give them a proper burial as if they were part of the royal family because after all I did send them to the Salt Lick Flats and I feel in some way at fault for their deaths."

Twilight-"That wasn't your fault Princess."

Bruno-"I agree. There was no way that you could have known that this would happen but at least his sister Sandy survived all of that and unharmed."

Princess Celestia-"You might be right Bruno. Anyway I must warn others in Equestria to be careful and to look out for any strange beings that look anything out of the ordinary."

Bruno-"Hold on Princess, We don't even know what this thing looks like and if you warn others out of the blue like that then it might start a panic through out nearly all of Equestria. I think we should wait until the spell I planted on the other two manticores finishes so that when we question them we will have an idea of what this creep looks like and it will be easier to narrow down what to keep an eye for in case the so called puppet master might show up again. Trust me."

Twilight-"It might better that we use Bruno's plan for the time being Princess but almost all of Ponyville saw what happened here today. If they tell others about this it still might reach the rest of Equestria within a few days."

Princess Celestia-"Alright Bruno. We'll go with your idea for now and as for keeping this matter quiet I'll handle it for now"

Princess Celestia(Speaking to all of Ponyville)"Everypony in Ponyville please listen carefully. I know you all witnessed something very shocking and disturbing today but I don't want to risk a panic that would spread to the rest of Equestria. So until we figure out who we're dealing with I ask that you not spread a word of what you saw to anypony outside of this town. The last thing that Equestria needs is a riot caused by panic. I will have some of my Royal guards stay here in shifts to make sure no trouble like that comes again. Can I trust that all of you will keep this matter quiet until further notice?"

Mayor-"I think that I can speak for Ponyville when I say that we'll keep it quiet for now."

Princess Celestia-"I appreciate all of your cooperation in this matter very much but now I really must get back to Canterlot to make arrangements for Rocky and Sierra's Funeral."

Bruno-"Hold on a sec Princess. Don't you want to meet Zetsu so he can show you how he can fix my missing arm?"

Pinkie Pie-"Oh Oh, I would love to see that too!"

Twilight-"I would be most interested in seeing how his power works."

Princess Celestia-"I guess I have some time for that but after that I must go."

Bruno-"You won't regret it. Hey Zetsu I need your help here!"

Zetsu then pops out of the ground and Princess Celestia is surprised by his strange appearance."

White Zetsu-"You called Bruno? Oh it seems that you need a new arm."

Black Zetsu-"We'll get you fixed up real quick."

Zetsu's white side then uses his left arm to grow and expand the white material and it then attaches to and covers Bruno's right shoulder and begins the process of growing him a new arm.

Bruno-"Thanks for the assist Zetsu and say Hello to Princess Celestia the Ruler of Equestria.

White Zetsu-"So you're Princess Celestia. It's an honor to finally meet you."

Black Zetsu-"I must say that you are very pretty for a princess like yourself."

Princess Celestia-"Well I must say you are very kind and sweet for saying that and I also must say that your powers are quite remarkable."

Bruno-"Princess. What's going to happen to Sandy since her brother died?"

Princess Celestia-"Well I will have to track down any family she has and she may have to live with one of them. Why do you Ask Bruno?"

Bruno-"That won't be necessary. Her Parents and 3 older sisters may still live in our old home town of Horseshoe Bay. That might make things easier for you and her. By the way were Rocky and Sandy living in Canterlot before he was sent to the Salt Lick Flats?"

Princess Celestia-"Rocky and Sierra were living in Canterlot but then Sandy came to live with them for the summer while she was on break from school."

Bruno-"Is there any chance that Lyra and I could come to the funeral. Even though Rocky was mostly my brothers friend, Lyra and I knew the family quite well when we were growing up there. It would be nice to see them again after all this time. Also since Lyra and Sandy were close friends too, It might put a smile on Sandy's face if she saw us again."

Princess Celestia-"You are more than welcome to come if you want to and it's nice that you want to cheer up one of you old friends like that."

White Zetsu-"I'm just about done here."

Black Zetsu-"You will need to stay off that arm for at least 7 hours which is the time needed for the material to harden enough for you to walk on it again so please take it easy."

Bruno-"I will and thanks again."

Zetsu finishes up and as the material from Zetsu's arm is coming off the new arm is complete and the ponies are very astonished.

Twilight-"That's amazing!"

Applejack-"I must say that is one weird but awesome power!"

White Zetsu-"We must be on our way now"

Black Zetsu-"It was nice seeing you all again. Take care."

As Zetsu says good bye he closes his flytrap leaves and goes underground.

Applejack-"Well that was sure interesting."

Princess Celestia-"I must say that was something worth seeing. Well really I must get back to Canterlot to prepare for the funeral. I'll send a letter to you through Spike to let you and Lyra know the details of when you can arrive. Is that OK Bruno?"

Bruno-"That would be fine Princess and thanks again."

Princess Celestia-"You're welcome. See you all later."

As Princess Celestia heads back to Canterlot, she begins to think about all of Bruno and Lyra's abilities from the battle and ponders how they could use such advanced magic at their ages.

Princess Celestia(thinking)-"That young filly Lyra has unbelievable strength and speed for her age but Bruno abilities are what puzzles me. I've never seen anypony use a spell that can distort the fabric of space with only his eye or even have any attack pass through his body like it was an illusion but what really bothers me is when Bruno made a hand out of solidified magic on his left hoof to tear off his poisoned right arm. Even I can't make magical energy solid like he did. Unless...?

Bruno(Flashback from memory)-"As for how we know how to fight like that we met this alicorn during our travels and she taught us not only how to fight but she also taught us magic spells and how to take our magical powers to the next level and judging by the magic we saw her do it looked like she was even more skilled than Princess Celestia."

Princess Celestia(thinking)-"That's it! The Alicorn he and his sister met must have taught them the advanced magic I saw earlier but outside of the royal family there are only a few alicorns who are from nobility that I know of. The noble families of Equestria are the "Star pony Family, the "Zabi Family and the 'Anavel Family' and but the Anavel was killed by HIM and the 'Star Pony' and 'Zabi' families are the only ones left and the Zabi family consists of mostly earth ponies. So who could this unknown alicorn be? However Bruno also mentioned that after he tried to revive his mother he ended up in another world and ended up gaining a massive amount of knowledge while in between the worlds. I'll have to ask Bruno that another time."

Meanwhile back in Ponyville. Bruno and Lyra Decide to go back home and get some rest so his arm could get better.

Bruno-"Lyra and I are going back to our house for some rest but before I go I can at least do this for you all."

Bruno Claps his hooves together and uses his alchemy to restore all the damage done to the town by the manticores in one large transmutation."

Twilight-"That was Cool. I did not know that Alchemy could be used on such a large scale."

Bruno-"Yeah well all I had to do is analyze all the damage I could see around me and then the rest was easy."

Twilight-"That is most impressive Bruno."

Fluttershy-"Twilight! You're Bleeding!"

Twilight-"What do you mean?"

Rarity-"It looks like the wound is above your eye sweetie."

Twilight-"How is that possible? I didn't even feel it. Hold on. It must have happened when  
Lyra pushed me out of the way as the manticore tried to attack me."

Lyra-"Are you saying it was because of me? If so then I'm really sorry Twilight."

Twilight-"Relax Lyra. It was the Manticore that did this. He must have gotten a hit off me back then as you pushed me and don't worry Lyra, even if this was caused by you then it was nothing compared to if I had been attacked by them. You saved my life and a little cut is nothing to get upset about anyway but it feels like it's still bleeding. Why won't it stop?"

Bruno-"Well even the most shallow wounds above the eye tend to bleed a lot more than other cuts but I have something that can help with that."

Lyra-"Well I can just heal her eye with my power Brother."

Bruno-"That's true but as I said we need to stop the bleeding first and this is a good time to try out my new medicine."

Bruno then uses his right eye to bring out an object to help Twilight.

Twilight-"What is that Bruno?

Bruno-"It's a special ointment I made from different herbs that I gathered from my Travels through Equestria. It's made to stop the bleeding from small wounds and can even heal them so well that it leaves no scar behind. Here let me apply it to the wound. It might sting for a second so bear with it."

Twilight-"Ouch that really does sting!"

Bruno-"There we go. Now whatever you do don't touch it or try to wipe it away for at least 4 hours. That way it can do its' job better."

Twilight-"Thank you Bruno. I'll be sure not to touch it till it's 100% healed."

Bruno-"Well Lyra and I are going back to our house for some rest please let us know when Princess Celestia send the letter with the Funeral details."

Twilight-"Sure but is your house even done yet?"

Applejack-"If it's not then your sister is still welcome to stay with us till you get the job done."

Bruno-"Are you sure Applejack? I don't want to impose on you like that."

Applejack-"It's no trouble at all. We are happy to have her over."

Lyra-"I'll be OK brother."

Bruno-"Well OK then. Besides I can still sleep at the house while I'm not working. Anyway I'll get rested up for tomorrow. Later all."

As Twilight and her friends go back to their homes for some rest to await Princess Celestia's letter for the Funeral, they were unaware that the unknown Human was watching them from a distance behind a tree and then a moment later he teleports away from town undetected from being sensed by Bruno and Lyra.

Later that night around Midnight the Unknown Human arrives at a familiar location in Equestria and begins to plan his next move to becoming a god but he deals with the manticore that was transmuted earlier.

Unknown human-"You did well for me manticore even if you didn't get the Elements of Harmony and a reward for your service I will release you from my control now."

The unknown human snaps his fingers and the manticore is back to normal.

Lead Manticore-"What happened and where am I? Wait it's you! I remember you and I remember what you made us do to those ponies in the desert and for using us as tools I will kill you!"

In a fit of rage the manticore takes his sharp claws and impales the human through the chest to kill him but survives and the human turns the tables on him.

Unknown human-"Is that all you've got? I did say I would release you from my control but I never said that you were free to go. I was going to track you down and my stone that's inside you and absorb you into my body but thank you for making it easier for me."

As the Unknown human then begins to suck the manticore into his body through the wound on his chest the manticore begins to recognize where he and the human are.

Lead Manticore-"Wait. This cave. It's the cave that leads to the gates of Tartarus! What do you plan to...?"

Then the manticore is completely absorbed into the humans body.

Unknown Human-"That was too easy."

The Unknown human begins to go into the cave and arrives at the gates of Tartarus and is approached by Cerberus and it is not happy to see him.

Unknown Human-"So this is Cerberus huh? I must say that it's interesting to see one face to face instead of from the pictures in books but now I'll be using your powers to continue my plans."

Cerberus then uses his paw and manages to pin the Human down to the ground but it was a  
bad idea.

Unknown Human-"I was expecting you to put up a fight but even this is still too easy but now your power is now mine."

The Unknown Human then begins to absorb Cerberus into his body and now he wields the Power of Cerberus himself and begins the next stage of his plans.

Unknown Human-"Hmm. So these are the gates of Tartarus. From what I learned from being here over 1500 years ago, Tartarus holds all the most evil and very powerful creatures and although the gates can be opened very easily, Cerberus has the power to keep the creatures at bay, but now I can use his power to my advantage."

The Unknown Human then opens the gates and then begins to plunges his hands into his chest and pull out an enormous Philosophers stone from his body six times the size of a beach ball and then he throws it into Tartarus and as he closes the gates the Stone then begins to break into tiny pieces each the size of a pebble and are headed into the depths of Tartarus to merge with all of the evil creatures in it.

Unknown Human-"Now each of those stone fragments that's been infused with my own power will seep into all of the creatures and as happens their power will continue to grow to the point where each of them will surpass me in power a thousand times over and then they will seek me out for more power to fuel their own bodies but for now I'll have to seal the gates shut to keep them in so their power can continue to grow even better. I'll release them when the time is right. This seal and lock will keep the gates closed and it's a strong as if there were a thousand Cerberus's guarding it. They won't be able to break it no matter how strong they get. Now Demons of Tartarus feast on the power I have given to you!"

The Unknown Human then closes the gates and places a seal that looks like a transmutation circle and on it is a lock with each of the three Cerberus heads on it and in the center is a small fragment of the Unknown Humans Philosophers stone to keep the gates closed and as he leaves the cave he decides his next move.

Unknown Human-"Now then what shall I do next? Maybe if I look into the memories of the manticore I absorbed earlier it might show me what else that he knows that I can use for the time being."

The Unknown Human's eyes glow red and is now looking into the memories of the manticore and has found something interesting in them.

Unknown Human-"Hold on a second. This might be of some use to me."

Rocky(In a flashback from the manticores memory)-"All I know is that the ones who hold the Elements of Harmony are a group of ponies that recently defeated Discord and that they currently reside in Ponyville, but that's 3 days away from here even if you fly nonstop and also I heard that Discord was released from his stone prison a while back and now he uses his magic with Princess Celestia to help out Equestria these days. I swear that's all I know. Please let us go!"

Unknown Human-"Discord huh? I remember him from the stories I've heard while I was in Amestris over 1500 years ago. He was a draconequus with the power to somewhat bend reality to his will and he ended up being sealed in stone twice by the Elements of Harmony and if I remember correctly that statue is now somewhere in Canterlot, most likely close to the Palace but for Princess Celestia to release a being that powerful and use his magic for good seems to good to be true, but either way I could add his power to my own and become even stronger. Well then it's settled. He's my next target."

The Unknown human then walks off into the night towards his next destination. Canterlot!

Ending notes of chapter 3

How Far will the unknown human go to get what he desires in Equestria and how will the  
ponies be able to prepare for the unknown humans next possible attack?


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4- Hurtful reunion and The dark truth revealed

Two days have passed since the manticores attack on Ponyville and Bruno and Lyra are in Canterlot with Twilight and her friends and the Funeral of Bruno's friend Rocky and his wife Sierra is just wrapping up but after the service in the next room Rocky & Sierra's families are having a hard time accepting the truth from Princess Celestia about the manticores being controlled and not being responsible for their deaths but when Twilight and her friends step in to back up Celestia on what happened.

Enid(Rocky's mother)-"I'm Sorry Princess Celestia but I find it hard to believe that the manticores were being controlled by something that you haven't seen yet and I don't believe that the manticores should go unpunished for what they did to my son and his wife. I want justice for what happened to them!"

Kurt(Sierra's Father)-"I agree. We want these monsters brought to justice and even if they were controlled by the so called puppet master then where's your proof?

Princess Celestia-"I want nothing more than to bring justice to the ones responsible for this awful crime and as for your proof I have witnesses to back me up on what I saw happen in Ponyville. Twilight would you and Bruno be so kind as to explain what you two discovered."

Sandy-"Did you say Bruno?"

As Bruno, Lyra and Twilight enter the room Sandy is excited to see her old friend once again after almost 4 years.

Sandy-"Bruno...Lyra...Is that really you?"

Bruno-"Hey Sandy, long time no see."

Lyra-"I'm sorry that we had to meet again considering what happened to your brother."

Sandy-"Just seeing you two again after so long makes me feel a little better."

Bruno-"Lyra, Why don't you and Sandy catch up somewhere else while Twilight and I explain to them what happened."

Lyra-"Sure thing brother. Sandy Would you like to meet my new friends from Ponyville?"

Sandy-"Sure!"

As Sandy is introduced to Applebloom, Sweetie belle and Scootaloo by Lyra. Bruno and Twilight begin to explain to the families the events of the Manticores attacks and after hearing Bruno's plan to uncover the truth they are somewhat less angry.

Twilight-"I know all of you are a bit uneasy with what you are going through and I'm very sorry for your loss, but I assure you that after what Bruno, my friends and I witnessed a couple of days ago it's most likely that the manticores were in fact being controlled by an unknown being with incredible power, but rest assure we are in the process of uncovering the truth behind all that's been going on and justice will be brought to those responsible for everything. Tell them Bruno."

Bruno-"I've managed to capture them and place them in an undisclosed location for now and I placed a spell on them to purge what ever evil power was in them that made them do what they did and when they are ready I'll use a memory spell on them to reveal who the Puppet master was that started this ordeal. Since most of you have known me for a long time I'm asking you to trust me. I will do what's right for Rocky and Sierra I promise you all that much."

After hearing the truth from Twilight & Bruno the families were still uneasy about what they heard until Rocky's mother stood up for him and that made the families decide to trust in Bruno's plan.

Enid(Rocky's mother)-"I've known Bruno since the day he was born and I can say that he's always been trustworthy even to this day. I think we should trust in his plan."

Bruno-"Thank you all for believing in me. I won't let any of you down."

After wrapping up the meeting Twilight decides to pay her brother a visit before she and her friends head back to Ponyville but as Bruno and Twilight leave the room Bruno ends up being told some shocking news.

Twilight-"Bruno. I'm going to say hello to my brother and is wife Cadence while I'm here in Canterlot. Would you like to meet them?"

Bruno-"Sure Twilight."

Enid(Rocky's mother)-"Bruno Wait a second I almost forgot there's something important I need to tell you!"

Bruno-"OK. Twilight would you mind going on ahead of me. I'll catch up to you later."

Twilight-"No problem."

Bruno-"So what this important thing you need to tell me?"

Enid(Rocky's mother)-"Well before I tell you I know that this might make you a bit uneasy considering your feelings about him but I thought you and your sister had a right to know."

Bruno-"Know what?"

Enid(Rocky's mother)-"Your Father came looking for you a few months after you and Lyra left Horseshoe bay."

Bruno-"What did you just say?"

Enid(Rocky's mother)-"Your father came back about 8 months after you two left but after he saw that the house you all lived in had burned down he thought that you two had died in it but After I saw him by the house I told him everything that had happened. Your mother passing away, The use of Alchemy to try and revive your mother and the injuries you got from that night and that weird plant pony and you and Lyra leaving to find a new home but even after hearing all of that he was happy to hear that you two were still alive but he broke out into tears when I told him that your mother had passed away."

Bruno-"Did he say where he had been all this time?"

Enid(Rocky's mother)-"Well after he arrived we decided to catch up for a bit and all that he told me was that after no luck with finding your brother in the caverns he figured that if his family had anything to do with his disappearance that he decided to confront his father but then ended up being held against his will by his father for quite a while, and considering what I heard about his families true intentions I figured that something odd would happen to him, but he managed to get away and ended up back in town but anyway when he asked where you two had gone I just pointed which direction you went and the next morning before he left to look for you two he told me that if I were to run into you or your sister at some point that I tell you that he's looking for you."

Bruno(thinking)-"So he's been alive this whole time. I assumed he was dead."

Enid(Rocky's mother)-"Bruno are you OK? You look a bit mad after hearing all that."

Bruno-"You're right I'm mad because no matter what excuse he has the hard fact is that he walked out on us and we had to watch our mother die and he wasn't there for her or us after that. I'm not sure if I want him back in my life."

Enid(Rocky's mother)-"Look! I know you feel uneasy about him but what about Lyra? She should know that her father is alive and has been looking for you two for a while. Do you intend to tell her? If you won't Then I will tell her."

Bruno-"No you're right. I'll tell her tomorrow when we get back to Ponyville. Listen I got to go now. It was wonderful to see you again. Take care Enid."

Enid-"You take care too and...OH SHOOT!"

Bruno-"What is it Enid?"

Enid-"I forgot to give you father the massage."

Bruno-"What Message?"

Enid-"A last request from your mother that she told me to pass to your father just before she died if he ever returned. If you run into him would you pass it on to him?"

Bruno-"I guess I can but only for my mother. What is it?"

As Enid whispers it to him he is a bit shocked to hear what it is. After hearing it Princess Celestia approaches Bruno.

Princess Celestia-"Bruno, Can I see you for a moment."

As Princess Celestia and Bruno go off to chat, Twilight spots her brother and the two of them begin to catch up about what happened in the past few days.

Twilight-"Brother over here!"

Shining Armor-"Hey Twiley! I heard about what happened in Ponyville. Is everypony OK?"

Twilight-"Were all fine thanks to my new friends Bruno and his sister Lyra although I was hurt a bit from the attack but don't worry it was just a scratch. They fought the manticores and Bruno managed to capture them. You should have seen it brother. It was awesome. Bruno can not only use Alchemy but he also possesses special powers beyond any that I've seen from any unicorn and that includes both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna put together and his sister Lyra also has unbelievable super strength and speed and she was the one who fought off two of the three manticores."

Shining Armor-"You're kidding? I had no idea that there were ponies that strong anywhere in Equestria. Wait did you say Alchemy? I've been hearing Rumors that there was a pony in Equestria that could use Alchemy but I had no idea that you had already met him. Can I meet him?"

Twilight-"He should be here any time now. He decided to catch up with some other ponies from his old home town. Anyway I was wondering if Cadence is here? I was hoping to say hello to her before I go back to Ponyville tomorrow."

Shining Armor-"Oh I'm sorry Twiley, but Cadence decided to take a trip with her friends out west to Las Pegasus three days ago and won't be back for another 4 days but I'll tell her you said hello for you."

Twilight-"Las Pegasus? That's the city in Equestria west of the Haystack Desert that's mostly known for a lot of gambling! I had no idea Cadence was into gambling."

Shining Armor-"She didn't go there to gamble. She went there for a wedding. One of her old friends from school was getting married and she was invited there to be the maid of honor and to help with the bachelorette party and if I know her that party will be very intense for those girls and her friend. Besides if she did decide to gamble I figured she go straight for the poker tables. I remember the last time that she played Poker with me and some of my friends from the royal guard she cleaned us all out and Yes she's that good."

Twilight-"Wow! That's a side of Cadence I never knew."

Shining Armor-"Cadence has been known to have a bit of a wild side but she always kept it under control. Well for the most part. Anyway I was wondering if you could tell me more of what happened from the attack in Ponyville?"

Twilight-"Well it's a bit long. Why don't I use my memory spell and I'll show you what actually happened."

Twilight uses her memory spell and Shining Armor can magically see everything that happened in Ponyville from meeting Bruno and Lyra to the battle with the manticores and seeing Bruno and Lyra's powers in action and is very impressed by what had happened.

Shining Armor-"Whoa! So the pony that can use alchemy is the alicorn and that he and his sister are both from the Star Pony Family? If he's that powerful with magic and Alchemy then maybe I should offer him a job with the Canterlot Royal guard. I could use another lieutenant to help us out."

Twilight-"Well if you want to ask him then go ahead. Wait a minute! Don't you already have like 5 lieutenants under your command? What do you need with more?"

Shining Armor-"Twilight. Any Pony in the Royal guard that I see with special talents I make my lieutenant and part of the Canterlot special forces too and being a part of that has its' benefits too."

Twilight-"Well let's see if he decides to take the job. Oh here he comes now. Bruno I'm Over here!"

Bruno-"Twilight I just got done talking with Princess Celestia and you won't believe what she and I just talked about."

Twilight-"Well before you tell me I'd like you to meet my Brother and Captain of the Canterlot Royal guard, Shining Armor."

Shining Armor-"So you're the one that can use alchemy. I must say that from what Twilight had told me you are quite powerful and I'd also like to thank you for protecting my Sister and the rest of Ponyville from the Manticores."

Bruno-"Well you're welcome and I must say it's a pleasure to meet you and I had no idea that you are Captain of the Royal Guard too."

Shining Armor-"Well I'd like to get to know you more a little better but I'll just cut to the chase. From what I've heard about your powers it got me thinking. I'd like to offer you a job as one of my lieutenants in the Royal Guard and as a member of the Canterlot Special Forces. If you accept the job then you will get pretty much anything you want. So what do you say? Do you want the job?"

Bruno-"Well the job sounds pretty awesome and I can't see any down side from taking it, but I must respectfully decline your generous offer, but thanks anyway."

Shining Armor-"Alright then if you just follow me to the castle we'll...Wait what?"

Twilight-"Wait! You're Turning him down? But Why?"

Bruno-"Don't get me wrong. The Job sounds great but my sister and I are already settled down in Ponyville and I really don't want to move again and also I like to do things my own way. You see I'm more of a researcher than a fighter. Which is why when I get back to Ponyville tomorrow I'll finish restoring our new house and then I can build my own magic and Alchemy lab. I hope you can see things from my point of view."

Shining Armor-"Well I'm quite shocked. No pony has ever turned down my offer like that in existence, but I fully understand where you are going with this but if you decide to change your mind, the offer will always be on the table so think about it as long as you want."

Bruno-"Sure, Oh which reminds me. I was talking to Princess Celestia and she approved my trip to Amestris and I'll be leaving eight days from now and I also got the approval to bring anypony I want with me."

Twilight-"That's great! Can I come too?"

Bruno-"Sure. In fact I was planning to ask your friends if they wanted to come too. We'll make this a research vacation out of it."

Shining Armor-"Amestris? What reason would you have to go there Twilight? After the things that Princess Celestia told me that happened there over 1500 years I'm not sure that I want you going there at all."

Twilight-"Brother. I'm not a little foal anymore and did you forget that my friends and I have fought off a lot of evil beings in the past like Discord and Nightmare Moon before. I'm smart enough to handle myself in any situation with my magic and my brains. I know you promised Mom and Dad that you would protect me but I need you to trust me. We'll be fine in Amestris and I highly doubt that whatever force that made the humans vanish is still there after 1500 years. Plus with Bruno and Lyra's powers with me and my friends there we will be just fine."

Shining Armor-"You do have a good point Twiley, but I still want to be safe on the matter. On the day you leave I'll have four of my guards accompany you and your friends to Amestris for additional protection. It would make me feel better if you let me do that for you but I'd still like to know why you are going there in the first place."

Twilight-"Alright Brother. If it will put your mind at ease then the guards can come too and to answer your question. Let me ask you this. Do you Remember the Ariel Ruins?"

Shining Armor-"Those giant ruins out to the east. Yeah I do. Why?"

Twilight-"Well a few days ago Bruno, Princess Celestia and I were talking about Alchemy and Princess Celestia mentioned that After the humans vanished she was looking for the Alchemy books so that she could make something called The Philosopher's Stone which is a powerful stone that can amplify magic and alchemy but there was no way to know how to make it until Bruno found a book that had a strange language on it that Bruno recognized from the ruins during his travels and he concluded that there was a chance that Alchemy may have started out there and not Amestris and there was a chance that the humans may have visited the ruins and that the answer to more forms of alchemy and the possibility of making the stone may be there."

Shining Armor-"You're kidding. If what you said is true then this could re-write some of the history of Amestris and maybe even Equestria too and it may even solve the mystery of those Ruins too. I hope you all find what you are looking for Safely."

Random Royal Guard-"Sir we need you back at the castle it's a bit urgent."

Shining Armor-"Oh Sorry Twilight I have to go now. Duty calls."

Twilight-"That's OK Brother. I'll just go and pay Mom and Dad a visit before I go back to Ponyville tomorrow."

Shining Armor-"OH Sorry Twilight but Mom and Dad aren't in Canterlot. They decided to spend a romantic week at the family beach house down south, ALONE if you know what I mean."

Twilight-"Eww Brother. I don't need to know that much. Well any way you take care of yourself."

Shining Armor-"You too and it was a pleasure to meet you too Bruno."

Bruno-"Likewise."

As Twilight and her brother go their separate ways, She, Bruno and the rest of her friends spend the night at the Canterlot Castle before heading back to Ponyville. Bruno then shares with the others about his plans to go to Amestris and decides to invite them all along with him and they happily accept.

Bruno-"So that's it. Do you all want to come to Amestris with me?"

Rarity-"How will we get there? It's all the way across the ocean and you can't fly us all there."

Bruno-"We'll the original idea was that we'll all be going by train to Hayloft Bay on the West coast and then we'll be going by boat but I have a much better Idea. Since I can fly I was thinking that if I use the vortex in my right eye then I can fly all of you there while you are in my pocket dimension after we arrive at Hayloft Bay by train, but I'll need a map to determine the shortest route from coast to coast. Overall the train ride from Ponyville to Hayloft Bay should be about 2 days at the most and depending on what time we arrive at the coast we can leave the same day or the next morning if we have end up arriving there at night and if we do spend the night after the train ride then the hotel rooms are on me. Oh and if you decide to pack anything with you then PLEASE pack Light. So are you all OK with this?"

Twilight-"I'm on board with this idea."

Rarity-"OH I'm in too. I would love to see what the humans clothing looks like so I can convert it into my own personal design and I'd like to get a look at the giant palace too."

Pinkie Pie-"Count me in as well."

Rainbow Dash-"Me too! I've always wanted to see that country."

Fluttershy-"Well I've always been curious about what that place is like."

Spike-"That sounds awesome! I'm coming too."

Applejack-"For a whole week you say? Sure. We don't have anything important to do on the farm during that time and I'm sure that Big Mac and Applebloom will handle everything else while I'm gone."

Applebloom-"Aw is. Can't I come too?"

Applejack-"No way little sis. I don't think it's safe for you to come along with us and besides I need you to stay behind and help Big Mac and Granny Smith with what ever work is needed back at Sweet Apple Acres."

Applebloom-"That's not fair and besides if it weren't safe to go in the first place then none of you would be going there at all. Am I right?"

Applejack-"Uh well..."

Bruno-"She's got a good point and besides Princess Celestia told me that she didn't find anything unusual there that would be deemed dangerous for us to not go and Twilight's brother will have 4 of the royal guards coming with us for additional protection. Everypony will be safe and don't forget about the special powers that Lyra and I have from when we battled the manticores."

Applejack-"Well OK Applebloom. You can come along if you work twice as hard with whatever chores are needed back at the farm so that Big Mac and Granny Smith won't have much to do while were gone. OK?"

Applebloom-"It's a deal!"

Sweetie Belle-"Rarity, Can I come too? Pretty please?"

Rarity-"Well I don't see the harm, so yes but I'll have to let Mother and Father know first."

Scootaloo-"I'll ask my parents if I can come too."

Twilight-"Well if you are coming along too Spike then I'll need to have somepony handle the library in Ponyville while I'm gone."

Spike-"What about that unicorn who works at the Canterlot library? You know the one with the glasses that always had her nose in more books than you? We last saw her before you and I moved to Ponyville. What was her name again?"

Twilight-"OH I think you mean Sheska. I'll ask her tomorrow if she would be up to that before we leave for Ponyville in the morning."

Bruno-"Well it looks like you all have you affairs in order but I still want to know if after we arrive at Hayloft Bay by Train do we go to Amestris by boat or do you want to fly inside me?"

After thinking about it for a few minutes they all come to a decision and decide to fly inside Bruno's pocket Dimension for the trip. After that they all decide to get some sleep for their train ride back to Ponyville in the Morning.

Later that night in Canterlot outside the Palace Labyrinth the Unknown Human continues to look for Discord's statue but is a bit surprised to find out that what he heard from the passing guards.

Patrol guard #1-"I still find it hard to believe that the Princess is allowing Discord to roam around free just so she can use his magic. Despite the good he has done so far I still don't trust him."

Patrol Guard #2-"Well you know Princess Celestia. If she finds a spark of good in anyone that's done bad things in Equestria then she believes that they're worth saving and I find that totally respectable. Speaking of Discord, Where is he now?"

Patrol Guard #1-"I heard he's out west having some fun somewhere in Las Pegasus but he should be back in a week or two."

As the guards walk away the unknown human plans his next move.

Unknown Human-"So that earth pony I killed was telling the truth after all. Princess Celestia found it in her heart to give Discord another chance and released him from his stone prison. Oh well. I'll wait for him to come back and take his power for my own but for now since Canterlot has a lot offer me I'll stick around for a while. How ever to make sure I'm not discovered I'll hide my self in the Crystal Caves underneath Canterlot. This way I can rest during the day and continue my plans at night while everyone is sleeping. Hmm speaking of sleeping I should see how Celestia looks with my own eyes."

The unknown human then fly's up to Princess Celestia's bedroom window and takes a good long look at her but just as Celestia senses something odd she wakes up and the unknown human teleports away before he is spotted.

Princess Celestia-"That's strange. I could have sworn I sensed something familiar outside my window. Something that I remember from Amestris a long time ago way before the humans vanished. No it must be my imagination playing tricks on me."

The unknown human had teleported to the crystal caves and decides to rest for a while.

Unknown human-"I think I'll rest here for a while I plan my next move. Maybe something in the in the Canterlot Library could be useful to me but I'll look into that much later so for now I'll rest here. I may be immortal but even my body needs to rest too. Hmm it seems that these crystals have some trace amounts of energy in them and I can use them to further my goal."

The Next Morning.

The ponies are on their train ride back to Ponyville, Bruno is about to get an unexpected surprise back in Ponyville that he will not be happy with.

Bruno-"So Lyra was Sandy sad to see you leave?"

Lyra-"A little but she and I will be writing letters to each other so we can keep in touch since we live so far away. I will miss her though."

Bruno-"Oh don't worry. You will see her again sometime in the future. Oh look here's our stop now. By the way Twilight, It looks like that the manticores will be ready tomorrow for questioning about who was controlling them."

Twilight-"That's great. This mystery will finally be solved."

As the Ponies dis-embark from the train The Mayor then approaches Bruno to tell him something.

Mayor-"Bruno I'm glad you are back. There's this alicorn who arrived in Ponyville two days ago and he says he knows you."

Bruno-"Who is it?"

Mayor-"I don't remember his name but he's over at Sugar Cube Corner right now eating breakfast if you want to meet him."

Bruno(thinking)-"An alicorn? Could it be?"

As Bruno, Lyra, Twilight and the others head over to Sugar Cube Corner Bruno discovers who it is and is really mad. It's his father.

Lyra-"Who's that you're looking at brother? He looks very familiar doesn't he brother. Brother?"

Bruno then runs up to the alicorn and in a fit of rage punches him in the face and then yells at him.

Haru Wing-blade(Bruno and Lyra's father)-"What the...?" Then Bruno punches him and knocks him to the ground with a bloody nose and as Twilight and her friends saw that they were shocked by his actions.

Twilight-"Why did he do that?"

Bruno(after punching his father)-"WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE YOU DOING HERE! You're gone for over four years and I come back home to see your sorry looking face! Why Don't you do me a favor and just go away old man!"

After Lyra hears him say 'Old man' she realizes who it is.

Lyra-"DAD?"

Applejack-"Did you say Dad?"

Lyra(Running over to him) -"He's back! Dad's finally back!"

As Haru is getting up from his punch to the face he is then knocked back to the ground by Lyra in excitement to see her father after 4 years and gives him a big hug.

Lyra-"Daddy! Oh I've missed you so much!"

Haru-"Lyra is that you? OH my, look how much you've grown since I was gone and I've missed you too. Bruno, it looks like you have gotten stronger and I can tell by that punch you gave me. Tell me, how have you two been since I was away?"

Bruno-"I have nothing to say to you Dad. Especially after you walked out on us that night."

Lyra-"Brother please. I'm eager to know what happened to him too but he's back now and we can be a family again just like before."

Twilight-"Bruno, who is he?"

Applejack-"I heard Lyra call him Dad a minute ago. This must be their father."

Lyra-"Everypony I'd like to introduce you all to our father, Haru Wing-blade of the Star Pony Family. Dad these my friends Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash. There are 3 more I want to introduce you too but it looks like they all went home already."

Twilight-"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Wing-blade."

Haru-"Me too and please call me Haru. Mr. Wing-Blade makes me sound like I'm old."

Fluttershy-"Bruno, Why would you punch your own father like that?"

Applejack-"I agree. That's no way to treat your Father."

Bruno-"JUST SHUT UP! I have my reasons for why I did that."

Haru-"Son, I know you're upset by what happened that night but you need to know that..."

Bruno-"JUST SHUT UP OLD MAN! I don't want to hear what your excuse is because the hard fact is that you abandoned us and that Lyra and I had to watch as Mom died in front of our eyes and you weren't there for us after that."

Haru-"I'm sorry that you and your sister had to go through that alone and I will always regret not being there to say goodbye to her and not being there for you after that but if you let me explain then you will know what really happened to me."

Lyra-"Brother can't you please hear him out?"

Bruno-"Fine Lyra. If you want to hear whatever he has to tell you then be my guest but I won't be here to listen to his lies."

Bruno is so upset by his father he flies away to be by himself.

Lyra-"Brother wait!"

Rarity-"Bruno where are you going?"

Haru-"Just let him go. He needs time to gather his thoughts and I can understand why he's so upset by me being back. He thinks that I abandoned him after looking for his brother but if he could only listen to what happened after that it might make things clear to him."

Twilight-"I am interested to know what happened to you too, because after what Bruno told us about what happened to his brother and then you went back to those caverns and then didn't come back for that long I came to the conclusion that you may have been dead."

Haru-"I'll bet that's what Bruno has been thinking too but I'm very much alive and as for what happened to me well it's a bit long."

Lyra-"What did happen to you Dad?"

Twilight-"Why don't you tell us inside and besides you need some ice for your face from that punch that Bruno gave you."

As they go inside Sugar Cube Corner Haru begins to tell them what happened to him that night.

Pinkie Pie-"Here's a bag of Ice for your face Haru."

Haru-"Thank you Pinkie Pie. Oh that's much better."

Twilight-"So tell us, what did happen to you?"

Haru-"Well as you know from Bruno, I went to Hoof Caverns to try to look for my other son Vince and after looking for almost 2 weeks I was about to come home until it got into my head that from what my wife and I argued about the chance that somepony from my family may have taken my son I then decided to go and confront my father once and for all and put an end to his insane ambitions."

Applejack-"That's right Bruno mentioned that your side of the family wanted to marry off other members of the family to keep the family name going or something like that."

Haru-"To protect the Star Pony bloodline is more like it. You see he was not always like that and stuff like that never was in his head until my Mother died. My mother always kept him in line and he was always clear headed because of her but after she died something inside him just snapped and he changed and was just so distraught by my Mom's death that he decided from then to keep the family name and bloodline alive but overtime my brother and I grew tired of his so called noble intentions and he and I just up and left him and we never looked back."

Lyra-"I had no idea that Grandpa was that crazy. Is that why you didn't want us to go there?"

Haru-"Exactly."

Lyra-"Wait! Brother? Are you saying that Bruno and I have an uncle too? If that's true then how come we've never met him?"

Haru-"Well you see when my brother and I were far enough away from our fathers home we realized that if we stuck together that there was a good chance that he could find us so we decided to split up and go our separate ways and not tell each other where we were going so that if my father found either of us then we won't know where the other is located."

Twilight-"Did you ever see your brother after that?"

Haru-"Unfortunately no. i tried looking for him just before i got married but after a couple of months of searching I had no luck. Anyway Getting back what happened to me, when I decided to go and confront my father back home I could tell that he still hadn't changed even after I left but going back there was the reason I hadn't come back because he was still so desperate for keeping the family bloodline alive he locked me up and for about 6 months. I was his prisoner."

Rainbow Dash-"No offense but your father isn't crazy. He's insane!"

Twilight-"I agree. How could he lock up his own son like that?"

Haru-"There's a lot more to it but I'll give you the shorter version for now. After some time I needed to come up with a way to get away from him so over time I decided to finally agree to his terms and after 6 months he decided to no longer put me under guard and it took another month for him to drop his guard but before I made my move I found out that my brother and my son Vince were not at the family home and they were still out there somewhere which put my mind at ease and that my father never knew about my wife and foals and when I found my means of escaping I asked him if I could talk to him alone and when we were alone and his back was turned away I took the vase in the room and I smashed him over the head with it and it knocked him out cold!"

As Lyra and the others were shocked by what Haru said Lyra then wondered something.

Lyra-"Oh my goodness Dad! Did you kill Grandpa?"

Haru-"No he was still alive after that but before I left him once and for all I left him a note for him to read after he wakes up and it said..."

Haru's letter-"I have had it with your twisted desires and if Mom were alive today she would have kicked you butt so hard your nose would bleed for a week. Also I'm going back to the mare I love and be with my son and daughter and if I ever see you again or if you come near my son or daughter then I'll be sure that the next hit to your head will kill you and I mean it. It's about time you started thinking about how your so called noble intentions are making the Star Pony name look to others in Equestria. Think about what my words in this letter and the hit to your head mean to you after this. Farewell, Your son, Haru."

Haru-"After I flew away It took me about a week to get back home but after I arrived I had noticed that my house had burned down and I thought that I had lost my wife and foals but then my neighbor Enid told me what had happened and I was relieved to hear that Lyra and Bruno were still alive but after she told me what happened to my wife I was just devastated and she had also told me what Bruno had done with his alchemy and after we talked for a while I then decided to go and look for you two so Enid pointed me in the direction of where you two went the day you both left and after almost 4 years of searching I found out that you two were here in Ponyville and here I am today but I'm still wondering. Tell me Lyra, What did your brother do with his alchemy after your mother died?"

Lyra-"Well he decided to look at those other alchemy books that you locked away and he found a book called Human Transmutation that is said to bring the dead back to life and after a few days of constantly researching the formula for it he decided to try and use Alchemy to bring Mom back but something went wrong and the transmutation backfired and it ended up costing him his right arm and left leg and what we ended up creating did not even look like mom at all but more like a deformed monster. There was more that happened to brother but you need to ask him about that if I knew where he flew off to."

Haru-"My goodness is sounds like you and your brother had been through quite an ordeal but I'm glad to know that you two are OK. Wait you said that your brother lost his arm and leg but he looks fine. Am I missing something?"

Twilight-"I think I should show you with my memory spell what that's all about."

Twilight then uses her Memory spell to show him memories of meeting Zetsu, Bruno's fake arm and leg and Zetsu making him a new arm after he had ripped it off from the battle with manticores."

Haru-"Whoa! That's a lot to take in but it's starting to make sense now but I still need to talk to Bruno and hear what happened to him too."

Twilight-"Do you want us to look for him?"

Pinkie Pie-"But Twilight. He could be anywhere."

Haru-"I'll save you the trouble. Back when we lived in Horseshoe Bay when ever he gets upset he always went to either the beach or the lake that was near the house and he just sits there throwing rocks across the water to clear his head. Is there a lake or pond anywhere near the direction he flew off to?"

Twilight-"There's a small lake in that direction. How about if I go and talk to him. I might be able to convince him to come around but I'll need some help. Would you be willing to come with me Lyra? He might listen to you if you came too."

Lyra-"Well I was hoping to catch up with Dad for now."

Fluttershy-"I'll come if you want. I'm good at keeping things calm when I'm around."

Twilight-"Sounds good. Let's go."

Twilight and Fluttershy leave to go and find Bruno and end up finding him 2 hours later at the lake outside of Ponyville skipping stones across the water just as his father predicted but talking to him was a bit difficult.

Twilight-"Look Fluttershy. There he is. His father was right."

Fluttershy-"Do you think he's up to talking to us?"

Twilight-"There's only one way to find out. Hey Bruno."

Bruno-"Oh hey Twilight. Hey Fluttershy. How did you know I was here? Wait did my Dad tell you I might be near a body of water?"

Fluttershy-"Um well you see..."

Bruno-"I figured as much. When I found out from Enid back in Canterlot after the funeral that he was looking for us I was feeling both confused and angry at the same time. A part of me wanted him to come back but over time that feeling kept getting smaller and smaller and then I just gave up and decided that I didn't need him in my life anymore and that I would be the one to take care of my sister from then on."

Twilight-"Listen. I know you have mixed feelings about your father and I can tell from that punch you gave him but he's still your father and even if you don't intend to make amends with each other don't you think you should at least try? Also what about Lyra? Don't you think that she deserves to have her father back in her life too?"

Fluttershy-"I agree! Do you really want to deny her that because you're still angry at him?"

Bruno-"You have a good point. By the way, what did my father have to say to you all?"

Fluttershy-"He told us a lot and stuff that you might be interested in hearing too."

Bruno-"Like what? What Lies did he have to say to get any sympathy from you all?"

Twilight-"After what we heard it sounds like he's been through worse than you and he did all that to protect you all from his families twisted desires and believe me that what he just told us was no lie because I secretly used a spell on him that if he lied the magical energy on his horn would turn red if he lied and everything he told us was the truth."

Bruno-"I'll ask again. What did he tell you all?"

Twilight then tells Bruno everything that his father told them and after hearing that he was not lying about what happened to him he decided to go and talk to him for his sisters sake.

Fluttershy-"Well Bruno. What are you going to do now?"

Bruno-"If it will make things better I'll go and talk to him but only for Lyra."

Fluttershy, Twilight and Bruno decide to go back to town and as they arrive at sugar cube corner he decides to give his father a chance but is still not easy being around him.

Bruno-"Dad."

Haru-"Hey Son. Are you alright?"

Bruno-"Could all of you give me a moment alone so I can talk to him in private for a few minutes please."

Twilight-"Sure no problem. Come on girls. We should let them be alone for now."

As Twilight and the others give them some time alone Bruno tells his father what is really on his mind but holds back for Lyra.

Bruno-"Listen Dad. The only reason I'm talking to you is because of Lyra and it's going to take more than a few apologies for me to forgive you for leaving us and even if what you said to Lyra and the others is the absolute truth it's still not enough for me to forgive you. Do you understand what I mean?"

Haru-"I understand how you feel son and I want to be a part of your lives again as much as I can but I still want to know. Why did you burn down our house?"

Bruno-"After what happened with trying to revive mom that night Lyra and I did it as a sign for us not to look back so we can move on to our new lives somewhere else."

Haru-"I understand."

Bruno-"Listen Dad I'm getting tired and I need to finish up on restoring my new house tomorrow."

Lyra-"Can Dad stay with us please?"

Bruno-"Fine with me but he sleeps on the couch until I say otherwise. Is that understood Dad?"

Haru-"Whatever makes you feel better son."

As Bruno, Lyra and their father leave Sugar Cube Corner they decide to head back to the house for the night so that they can be ready to question the manticores in the morning.

Applejack-"So is everything OK with all of you?"

Lyra-"Well not completely but it will take some time til things get better but at least I convinced brother to let Dad stay at the house for now but he sleeps on the couch."

Fluttershy-"Well it's nice that you two are trying to work things out."

Pinkie Pie-"Soon you will be a happy family again."

Bruno-"Yeah well I'm only doing this for Lyra and as for me it's going to take a very long time for me to forgive him for leaving us. Well anyway Applejack, can Lyra stay with you for one more night please? The house should be done by tomorrow and her room will be ready by then for her."

Applejack-"No problem Bruno. She is more than welcome to stay with us and Applebloom will be happy to have her over."

Bruno-"Thanks and by the way Twilight, the manticores will be ready tomorrow afternoon so let the princess know tonight OK."

Twilight-"No problem I'll have Spike write a letter to her tonight."

Bruno-"Thanks. Later all"

As everyone goes home for the night Bruno and his dad say goodnight to each other.

Bruno-"Dad Listen. I'm still mad at you for leaving us and the only reason I'm even still talking to you is because I feel that Lyra deserves to have you in her life and no matter how much I want to make her happy I will have feelings of anger inside me about you for a long time but a really small part of me is glad to have you back."

Haru-"I understand son and you take a long as you want. I'm glad to be back too. Goodnight son."

Bruno-"Goodnight dad. OH by the way Enid wanted me to pass a message to you from Mom just before she died."

Haru-"Oh really? What?"

Bruno-"Mom said...'Because I'm dying I just wanted to say I'm Sorry that I could not keep my promise to you but you can live on for me as my final wish.' That's what Enid wanted me to tell you from Mom. By the way what was this promise she was talking about?"

Haru-"It's something that your mother and I did before any of you were born. Don't worry about that son."

Bruno-"That's fine Dad. Goodnight."

As Bruno heads upstairs to bed he hears a noise from the room his father is in as he peeks in he notices that his father is crying and saying some words to himself."

Haru(Talking to himself while crying)-"I'm sorry Ruby. Please forgive me. I will always love you no matter what"

Bruno then heads to bed and after hearing that his view on his father begins to change slowly from then on for the better.

Meanwhile at Twilight's place.

Twilight-"Spike take a letter."

Twilight's letter-"Dear Princess Celestia, Earlier today after we got off the train from Canterlot, Bruno and Lyra were shocked to see that their father was in town waiting for them but Bruno was not too happy about it. He was so mad at his father for leaving them from way back that he ran up and punched him in the face so hard that he knocked him to the ground but Lyra was excited to see him after being apart for over four years. My friends and I got to know him better and he told us what had happened to him and why he left them in the first place. Bruno at first didn't want to hear him out and flew off to be alone but after reasoning with him, he decided to give his father a chance for his sisters sake and keep him in their lives for now. Their Father is currently residing in Ponyville at Bruno's house if you want to meet him and so far their renewed relationship is OK but it will take a while for Bruno to forgive his father for leaving them alone after their mother died but I believe things between them will get better over time. Also Bruno said the Manticores will be ready for questioning tomorrow afternoon so if you want to be there to ask them anything let me know by tomorrow morning and Bruno will set things up. Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle."

Spike breathes his green fire on the letter and they both go to sleep for the night."

The next day.

It's about 11:AM and Twilight receives a letter from Princess Celestia.

Spike-"Twilight. I just got a response from the Princess."

Twilight-"Great Spike."

Celestia's letter to Twilight-"Dear Twilight, I will be arriving in Ponyville around 1:PM for when the Manticores get questioned so have things ready and I'm also very touched that you and your friends were kind enough to help Bruno and Lyra mend their relationship with their father and I'll always be proud to have my faithful student and her friends help other ponies with what ever problems they need in life. So keep on helping others out. Your friend, Princess Celestia. P.S. I'll be bringing Shining Armor along so that when we get the information from the manticores he'll have the Royal Guards ready for what to watch out for."

Twilight-"She's bringing my brother along too? I did not see that coming. Well I'd better let Bruno know when she'll be here."

Twilight meets Bruno at his house and give him the information from the letter.

Twilight-"Bruno you got a minute? Bruno are you there?"

Haru-"Oh hello Twilight. Bruno's not here right now. He's getting Lyra enrolled at Ponyville Elementary school and won't be back for an hour. I stayed behind so I could clean up the mess leftover from when Bruno just finished his house. Is there anything I can help you with Twilight?"

Twilight-"Well it's a bit complicated but I really need to talk to Bruno."

Haru-"That's fine. Oh by the way, He told me this morning about what happened when he tried to bring his mother back to life. The portal that brought him to another world and him gaining strange new powers from it and him using those new powers when he and Lyra fought against those manticores that attacked Ponyville a few days ago. The thing is that I had no idea that Lyra's powers would awaken this early and at her age."

Twilight-"He had told me that Lyra had gotten the strength and speed from their mother. Are you saying that your wife had other powers that she may have passed on to them too?"

Haru-"How about I tell you the rest another time and I'll take you over to the school if you are eager to talk to Bruno. Now where is the school again?"

Twilight-"I'll show you where it is. Come with me."

Twilight and Haru go into town to meet Bruno at the school and she tells him about Princess Celestia's arrival for when the manticores are ready and Bruno is just getting things finished up for when Lyra starts school on Monday.

Bruno-"So Ms. Cheerilee, everything is set up and are you sure she will fit in here? We were home-schooled for so long I don't know how she'll be."

Ms. Cheerilee-"Lyra will be just fine and from what I heard Lyra, Scootaloo, Applebloom and Sweetie Bell have become close friends in such a short time and they and I will help her at school when she needs it."

Bruno-"OH that's great!"

Twilight-"Bruno hey!"

Bruno-"Hey Twilight! Oh hello Dad."

Haru-"Hi Son. So is Lyra enrolled in school yet?"

Bruno-"Yes Dad everything is all set up and Lyra will start on Monday."

Ms. Cheerilee-"Oh this is your Father Bruno. It's nice to meet you."

Haru-"Same here."

Twilight-"I'll let you two get better acquainted. Bruno I need to talk to you."

Bruno-"OK Twilight what's up?"

Twilight-"Princess Celestia will be here at 1:PM today. Will the manticores be ready by then?"

Bruno-"I think they are almost ready so I'll check on them right now."

Twilight-"Are you going to release them now?"

Bruno-"No Twilight I'm going into the pocket dimension to check on them."

Twilight-"You can go into your own body like that? How is that possible?"

Bruno-"Twilight, my eye acts as a doorway into and out of the dimension. I've gone into it myself several times in the past. Here's my plan. I'll go in and get the manticores ready for when the Princess Arrives this afternoon and then I'll bring them out and then I'll bind their arms and wings so they don't get away or try to attack again so if you let others in Ponyville know what my plan is then they will feel safe enough to come. OK?"

Twilight-"Sounds good. You can bring the manticores to the town hall later and I'll be sure to tell Lyra and your father to meet you there later."

Bruno then opens the vortex and enters the dimension to get the manticores ready for later.

12:55 P.M.  
Princess Celestia and Shining Armor arrive in Ponyville and are waiting for Bruno to bring the manticores out for questioning and are both greeted by Twilight Sparkle.

Twilight-"Princess Celestia! Brother! Over Here!"

Shining Armor-"Hey Twiley. Is everything setup?"

Twilight-"Bruno should be here any second now."

Haru-"Twilight what's going on?"

Twilight-"Do you remember the manticores attacking Ponyville a few days ago?"

Haru-"Yeah I do. Why?"

Twilight-"Well Bruno discovered that they were being controlled by someone and if we find out who that is then that individual will be brought to justice for the attacks and killing Bruno's friend Rocky and his wife."

Haru-"Rocky was killed by those manticores? Are you serious?"

Twilight-"Save your questions for later Haru. Bruno's coming right about now."

Bruno then appears outside the town hall from the vortex and is just about ready for everyone in town.

Bruno-"Glad you came Princess. I'll bring them out now."

Princess Celestia-"Are you sure that they are ready?"

Bruno-"Positive. I used a spell to bind their arms and wings together so that the risk of them attacking will be reduced greatly and they'll be unconscious while I use my memory spell to look into their memories to see who it was that made them the way they are."

Bruno then opens the vortex and both manticores come out unconscious and Bruno then begins to look into their memories."

Bruno-"Well here goes nothing."

Bruno then uses his memory spell to look into one of the manticores memories and he starts from the day before the attack.

Bruno-"I'm starting at the day before the attack and so far all they were still flying here. I'll look back a little further."

Bruno goes back 4 days and sees something that he did not want to see. Rocky's death.

Bruno-"OH my goodness! I'm at the day they killed Rocky and Sierra. OH how horrible."

Twilight-"I'm sorry you had to see that Bruno."

Bruno-"It's OK. I have a hunch I'm getting closer to the truth. I'll keep looking."

As Bruno continues to look at their memories the unknown human begins to feel the presence of the other two manticores and plans to ruin everything for Bruno.

Unknown Human-"I can feel my connection to the other two manticores again and feels like their memories are being probed. I must make sure that my identity is not revealed to them until I'm ready to do that myself. I'll have to force them awake and get them back to me."

As the unknown human begins to awaken the manticores Bruno then stumbles on to the night the manticores met the human but then his spell is broken by the manticore waking up in anger and fear.

Bruno-"Hold on I think I have something! I'm at him about 9 days ago and it looks like they weren't being controlled and...wait they spotted something but I can't tell what it looks like clearly because it's dark."

Princess Celestia-"What is it Bruno?"

Bruno-"I don't know but I can see that its' eyes are glowing and it's tall and...OH it shot some kind of red light into them. Hold on it looks like the thing is walking towards them. I might be able to figure out what kind of creature it is. It's getting closer, closer, Wait I think I can see it clearly and it might be..."

Manticore under spell-"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! GET ME OUT OF THESE THINGS NOW!"

Twilight-"He woke up but how?"

Shining Armor-"Wait, Why his mouth is bleeding?!"

Bruno-"It looks like He bit into his tongue so hard and the pain was strong enough to snap him out of my spell."

Manticore-"Where am I? Wait this is Ponyville and...Princess Celestia is that you?"

Princess Celestia-"So you are awake. Let me ask you something. Do you remember what happened to you in the past few days?"

Manticore-"Listen to me. You have to kill me now or else he'll use me again to kill others like he made us do to those other ponies that were in the desert."

Twilight-"Did you just ask us Kill you?"

Princess Celestia-"We have no intention of killing you but can you at least tell us who was the one who forced you to do those things? What did he look like? What was his name?"

Manticore-"I did not get his name but I can tell you what he looked like."

Twilight-"What is he? What kind of creature is he?"

Unknown Human(From underneath Canterlot)-"I've got you now manticore But I'll have to make this quick for now."

Manticore-"All I can tell you that you are all dealing with a...a...ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh..."

Shining Armor-"What's happening to him?"

Bruno-"If I had to guess it looks like whoever was controlling him in the first place is trying to regain control of him again."

Princess Celestia-"Can't you do something to stop it?"

Bruno-"I'll try but all I can think of is to trap him back in my pocket dimension but I'll have to make this quick."

Shining Armor-"What's happening to his body now?"

The manticores body begins to get bigger and then with its' enhanced strength breaks the energy chains that Bruno placed on him and is now completely under the unknown humans control once again and begins to talk to the ponies."

Twilight-"He's free! Can you bind him again Bruno?"

Bruno-"I'll try but it won't be easy. Here goes."

Unknown human(speaking through manticore)-"Calm down everyone. I have no intention of fighting you, at least for now."

Princess Celestia-"It's you again! I want to know who you are and I demand an answer now!"

Unknown Human(speaking through manticore)-"So we meet again Princess Celestia and a fair hello to the holders of the Elements of Harmony. I can tell you were that desperate to know my identity that you would risk bringing the manticores out where I can feel their presence and my Philosophers stone that's inside them too but the minute I detected them I quickly regained control of them. Well at least this one for now."

Princess Celestia-"You said that you saw me a long time ago. I want to know when and where you saw me last time?"

Unknown Human(speaking through manticore)-"You're that eager to know who I really am. Well I'm about to take these manticores away to where I'm hiding but if you really want to know who I am or where I'm at then I'll give you a clue Princess."

Princess Celestia-"Fine I'll play your game. What's your clue?"

Unknown Human(speaking through manticore)-"I'll keep it short and this clue also applies to you Princess and to each of the holders of the Elements of Harmony so listen. If you want to find me then you should know that I'm closer to each of you than you think. I may be above or may be below but you will have to find that out for yourself."

Twilight-"Closer that you think? Is he anywhere near by?"

Shining Armor-"If he his then it's not his lucky day. The 4 Pegasai that flew us here are also part of the royal guard and they'll sweep the area to try and find him. Now Go!"

Winged guards-"YES SIR!"

Unknown Human(speaking through manticore)-"Don't bother searching now. You can try if you want to but it's going to be in vain. I'm in a well hidden location and so far I've been able to keep my self from being discovered while I roam around Equestria and I'll be taking this manticore and the other one to my location now."

The manticore then uses his tail to carve the Human Transmutation circle into the ground and then uses his tail to grab the other manticore by the throat and then activates the transmutation circle but Bruno notices how the circle is activated.

Bruno-"Get back everypony! It's the human transmutation circle again!"

Unknown Human(speaking through manticore))-"Bruno is it. Did it ever cross your mind that the only reason that the other manticore could use alchemy is because he can't but I can by channeling my power from me to him?"

Bruno-"I figured that might be the case. Why?"

Unknown Human(speaking through manticore)-"Well if you want another clue as to who or what I may be then pay close attention to this action."

Bruno-"Wait are you...?"

Bruno then notices that the manticore activated the circle by clapping his hands together and is shocked. As the portal slowly drags the manticores into the eye the unknown human says one more thing to Celestia and after hearing it she begins to feel uncomfortable from that day forward.

Unknown Human(speaking through manticore)-"Celestia let me tell you one more thing."

Princess Celestia-"What is it?"

Unknown Human(speaking through manticore)-"That strange feeling you sensed outside your bedroom window two nights ago. That was me looking at you and remembering you the day you first met me but I managed to teleport away before you spotted me. Til we meet again Princess Celestia."

The manticores are now gone and Princess Celestia and the others begin to realize that they may be up against the most powerful foe in existence and begin to plan their next move.

Princess Celestia-"He was outside my window? How can that be?"

Shining Armor-"Princess. If he's that powerful a foe to be able to avoid being detected by the guards and managed to get that close to you then it's about time we started beefing up security in Canterlot to its' maximum."

Princess Celestia-"Not yet. I'll still don't want to create a panic in Canterlot or worse in all of Equestria and besides so far he hasn't caused anymore harm to any others in Equestria and until we know more about the identity of him we need to be careful for now. Bruno were you able to get any useful info out of the manticore's memories before he woke up?"

Bruno-"I'm sorry princess, but I could not see clearly enough to make a positive ID but I have a theory on what it might be."

Princess Celestia-"Explain it to everyone Bruno."

Bruno-"You see the transmutation circle can be activated by touching it even without clapping my hooves or in the manticores case his hands together but the manticore can't do alchemy like I can unless he also saw the portal of truth too and he could only see it if he tried the same kind of alchemy I used to try and bring my mother back to life and the HE also said that only reason that the manticore could use alchemy is because he's channeling his own power into the manticore to do it."

Twilight-"What are you getting at Bruno?"

Bruno-"Princess, didn't you say that the humans were the ones that could use alchemy in the first place?"

Princess Celestia-"Yeah I did but what does one thing have to do with...Wait you're not saying that...?"

Bruno-"I'm not 100% sure on this but I think that our foe may possibly be a human."

After hearing what Bruno just said Princess Celestia begins to question Bruno's theory.

Princess Celestia-"How can that be? I searched all over Amestris for a long time and used various spells and after all that I never found a single human to this day and if there was even one human alive my magic would have been able to find them even if they were hiding anywhere in either Amestris or Equestria."

Bruno-"Did you forget that he's in possession of a Philosophers stone and if you remember when Lyra landed a blow to the manticores face a few days ago and that the stone managed to heal the wound closed? If the stone can heal any kind of wound then it's possible that the stone can also extend ones own lifespan to the point where that one can live for hundreds or possibly thousands of years."

Twilight-"Is that even possible? Bruno are you sure that it might be a human? Don't forget that others from Equestria have been to Amestris too and there might be a chance that someone from Equestria may have also learned alchemy and may have created a Philosophers stone too and besides we need more proof that what we might be dealing with is a human for sure."

Bruno-"You've got a point Twilight but there's a chance the answer might be in Amestris."

Princess Celestia-"I'm not so sure going there is the best idea considering not only what just happened here but also that you said that our newest enemy might be a human."

Bruno-"If were dealing with one human then it's most likely that if we leave within the next two days we can get the answers we need to defeat him."

Applejack-"Why can't we just use the Elements of Harmony on him?"

Twilight-"We can't use the Elements if we don't know where HE is hiding and that reminds me. If he was that close to the palace the night he saw Princess Celestia, then why didn't he just take them back then?"

Princess Celestia-"You're right. If he had the chance to take them that night then why did he leave them?"

Twilight-"Didn't you say that the Elements were in a closed chamber protected by one of your spells Princess? Maybe he couldn't detect them then."

Bruno-"Given his power he could have sensed where they are and he could have taken them but I think he left them behind on purpose but I don't know the reason why and I've also come to the conclusion that what he truly is seeking is here in Equestria and not anywhere else which means he'll be in Equestria for quite a while."

Princess Celestia-"All that aside I've come to a decision. Bruno you and who ever you want to take with you are ordered to leave for Amestris within the next two days and seek out whatever you can find that can help defeat this new evil and help save Equestria. Is that understood?"

Bruno-"Yes Princess. Twilight, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Rarity. Are you still up to coming along with me? I'll understand if any of you are too nervous to come and there's no shame in backing out. So what do you say?"

Twilight-"I'm not backing out."

Applejack-"Count me in too."

Spike-"Ditto on that."

Fluttershy-"I'm in too."

Rainbow Dash-"I'm not going to let a new foe keep me down! I'm going too!"

Rarity-"I won't abandon my friends. I'm going too!"

Pinkie Pie-"I'm coming too!"

Lyra-"I'm Coming too brother!"

Haru-"Count me in too son."

Bruno-"You're coming too Dad? Why?"

Haru-"It took me a long time to look for you and your sister and I'm going to spend as much time with you and ever since I lost your mother and brother I don't want risk losing you two as well and I won't take no for an answer."

Bruno-"That's fine with me but we might want to take the train out of Canterlot to get to Hayloft Bay since it will have the least amount of stops."

Shining Armor-"I'll have the guards ready to come with you to Amestris the day you get to Canterlot to leave for Amestris Twilight."

Applebloom-"I can't wait to see Amestris when we get there."

Applejack-"I'll only let you come if you and your friends promise to stay close to us so that you can be safe. Is that understood little sister!"

Applebloom-"I promise big sister."

Twilight-"Princess Celestia when you get back can you ask Sheska at the Canterlot Library if she can watch the Ponyville library while I'm gone please? I forgot to ask her the day we left Canterlot after the funeral."

Princess Celestia-"No problem Twilight. I'll ask her when I get back to Canterlot. I'll see you all in a couple of days."

As Bruno and the others head back home for the night the unknown human begins to plan his next move while hiding underneath Canterlot in the Crystal caves.

Later that night.

Unknown human-"With these crystals and a fragment of my Philosophers stone I can channel my energy through them to spy on all of Canterlot and maybe I can get something useful from these ponies or even from Celestia herself but first I must add these two manticores into my body to make my self stronger."

As the unknown human absorbs the manticores into his body he leaves the Philosopher stones that were inside them outside his body so he can use them and the crystals for his plan. He then places one stone in a crystal stone he found on the ground and absorbs it into his body and the other stone in the walls of the crystal caves so that he can use his power to spy on all of Canterlot.

Unknown human-"Now I'll know everything that's going on and I'll be closer to my ultimate goal of becoming a GOD. Tread lightly Celestia because I'll be watching you and those that are close to you."

Ending notes of chapter 4.  
Will Bruno and the others be able to find what they are looking for in Amestris when they arrive and will they succeed of will they run into more trouble down the road and will the unknown human become aware of their actions now that he can spy on all of Canterlot?


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5-The journey to the abandoned country and the Stars true bloodline revealed.

The next day  
It's around 9:AM and Bruno and the others are about to board the train to Canterlot so they can leave from there to Hayloft Bay and from there to Amestris across the ocean and Twilight meets her old friend Sheska from Canterlot getting off the train and prepared to take over the Ponyville Library while Twilight is away.

Twilight-"Sheska over her!"

Sheska-"Twilight! It's good to see you again. How long has it been?"

Twilight-"I'm not sure and I really can't remember off the top of my head. Anyway my train will be leaving in a few minutes so how about I show you to the library real quick?"

Sheska-"That would be nice."

As Twilight and Sheska arrive at the Library Twilight gives Sheska instructions for the library while she's gone.

Twilight-"So all that you need to do is help anypony in town find whatever book they are looking for and be sure to keep the place clean and you are free to use my bed if you need a place to sleep instead of going to the INN here in Ponyville. So do you need to know anything else before I go Sheska?"

Sheska-"Nope. I think I can handle things from here. You have a safe trip to Amestris Twilight."

Twilight-"I will Sheska. OH I have to go now. I can hear the trains whistle blowing. Take care."

As Twilight leaves the library she rushes to the station and barley misses her train but was able to make it in the nick of time and then the train departs for Canterlot.

Rarity-"Twilight that was way too close even for you. You almost missed the train."

Twilight-"I'm sorry but I had to make sure everything was ready for Sheska before I left."

Spike-"I hope she's up to the job. By the way, did you have to bring all those books with you? I thought that we were going to bring back some books from the Libraries in Amestris for research on that red stone that you and Princess Celestia are so desperate to make?"

Twilight-"The books I brought are the Alchemy books that belong to Bruno and if we have them with us then it might be useful for if we discover some helpful information there and we need those books right away then-well you get the idea Spike."

Spike-"That's true. So does anypony know what the plan is for when we get to Canterlot?"

Bruno-"Well we'll arrive in Canterlot in about 4 hours but we'll have to wait about an hour for the other train that leaves for Hayloft Bay to arrive so we'll have some time to kill before we need to leave and when we do leave it will be a 2 day trip with about 6 stops on the way and a 1 hour layover around the third or fourth stop and depending on what time we arrive at Hayloft Bay we will either leave right away or we may have to stay at a hotel for the night and if that's the case then we will leave the following morning very early. Any questions?"

Rainbow Dash-"Yeah. If you're going to fly us there across that ocean while we're inside your dimension, isn't there a chance that you might need to sleep at some point and if that happens how will you handle that?"

Bruno-"Well in the event I might want to rest my wings and body for a bit I'll rent a boat big enough for two and store it in me and when I need to rest in the ocean I'll bring the boat out and I'll rest in it for a while and sleeping will be kept to a short amount of time."

Rarity-"Well my question is a bit awkward. Well I know that 'certain needs' will be taken care of on and off the train but I was wondering if while were inside you what happens if one of us needs to use the 'little ponies room'? Do you carry a bathroom in that dimension of yours?"

Bruno-"Oh that does feel awkward but I have a plan for that too. What I'll do is before we leave for Amestris I'll place a barrier spell around all of you that will freeze time inside the barrier and when I arrive in Amestris I'll let you all out and it will feel like the trip was instantaneous and if you need to use the bathroom after that then feel free to after we arrive."

Twilight-"I was wondering that if you do need to rest in that boat and end up falling asleep in  
it then will you know which direction to head in since the boat will move while in the ocean?"

Bruno-"To make sure that I'll be heading in the right direction I'll be picking up a map of Amestris in Canterlot and since we'll be heading west if I do fall asleep I'll use my brothers old compass to figure out where west is when I wake up since a compass always points towards north."

Pinkie Pie-"I was wondering what is it we'll actually be doing there in Amestris when we get there? Like where will we be going to and what we're looking for exactly?"

Bruno-"Where we are going is to the many Libraries in Amestris and looking for any of the books that may contain information on the language in this book with the writing of the 'Ariel Ruins' in there and hope that if we find what we are looking and use that information to translate that language in that book that will help us figure out how to make a Philosophers Stone and use it to not only defeat that creature that's in hiding but to also use its' power to help out Equestria even further with its' power."

Applejack-"When we arrive where will we be staying if we need a place to sleep?"

Bruno-"Well depending on which area we are in if their are buildings close by then it's most likely that we can sleep in one of the houses that the humans once lived in. I mean it's not like they're using them anymore."

Fluttershy-"How long will we be staying in Amestris?

Bruno-"Well not counting the time we'll be on the train and possibly if we have to stay in Hayloft Bay for a night we'll most likely be in Amestris for a week at the least."

Rarity-"I have another Question. I figured that we'll be bringing back those books in your dimension but Are we allowed to bring back anything else we might want to bring with us for as a souvenir?"

Bruno-"Well I think that all we are bringing back is just the books but I'll ask Princess Celestia if we can bring back anything else."

Spike-"I was wondering, did you bring Zetsu along for the ride too? I don't see him anywhere on the train? Is he not coming too?"

Bruno-"I told Zetsu to head for Canterlot last night before I went to bed. Since he is made of plant based materials he can travel through the plant life, soil and moisture underground really fast and since you all witnessed his powers in the past I decided to have him come along just in case we need his help. Anymore questions?"

They all say-"Nope we're all good."

After answering Bruno's questions they all know that he is well prepared for anything that comes their way and begin to enjoy the train ride in peace.

Meanwhile underneath Canterlot the unknown human begins to use his power to spy on Canterlot in hopes of getting any useful information for himself. He then transmits his power into Canterlot and places small strange looking Eyes in various locations of Canterlot where no pony can see them so that he can see and know what's going on and he stumbles across something useful for himself."

Unknown Human-"Now with these eyes all over the place I'll get what I need and it will be impossible for anypony to see them since they're well hidden. Now let's see what Canterlot and its' residents have to offer me."

After 4 hours on the train the ponies arrive in Canterlot and since they have to wait an hour for the next train they decide to stock up on supplies for their two day trip to Hayloft Bay."

Bruno-"Alright everypony listen up! We have an hour til the next train so if any of you want to get some supplies like food or whatever is necessary for the trip please make it fast. Twilight and I will be heading to the Canterlot Archives to find a map of Amestris for when we leave for there. You all have 45 minutes to get what you need and make sure you all are close to the station for when we leave."

Applejack-"Don't worry we'll be fast and I have some family here in Canterlot that sells food so we'll be able to get a discount on it."

Bruno-"Oh that reminds me. I'm giving each of you 6 a pouch filled with 100 bits in case you don't have enough of your own money so anymore stuff is on me and as I said earlier only get supplies that we need such as food. Only the essentials. When we get to Hayloft Bay I'll get some more supplies before we head out to Amestris. "Dad will you take the girls someplace to eat before we leave? They could use a good meal for the trip too."

Haru-"Sure thing son."

Bruno opens the vortex in his right eye and 6 pouches of money comes out and he gives each of them to Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and his father each of them go into town to get supplies for the trip and for Haru getting Lyra, Applebloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Bell some lunch.

Twilight-"Shall we go to the Archives and get the maps we need Bruno?"

Bruno-"Let's make this quick Twilight."

As Bruno and Twilight are about to head for the Canterlot Archives she is met by someone special that is back early from her trip.

Cadence-"Twilight over here!"

Twilight-"Cadence is that you?"

Twilight and Cadence-"_Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake! Clap your hooves and do a little shake!_"

Twilight-"It's so good to see you again but what are you doing back from Las Pegasus early? My brother told me that you wouldn't be back for another 3 days."

Cadence-"Well after the Wedding and reception I decided to have some fun in the casino and I ended up winning a lot of money and decided to leave early. By the way Shining Armor told me what happened in the past few days and that you and your friends are going to Amestris."

Twilight-"Yeah and right now we are going to the Canterlot Archives to get maps of Amestris which reminds me. Did you see any royal guards at the station? We were supposed to meet them there so that they can come with us as my brother wanted?"

Cadence-"That's why I'm here. Instead of having the guards coming along I convinced your brother that I'm coming with you too."

Twilight-"You're coming? Why?"

Cadence-"I've had a lot of training with the royal guards and my magic is much stronger than 8 of those unicorn guards put together and that makes me the perfect 'guard' to come with you to Amestris with all of you and your friends and we'll get to spend some time together just like we used to."

Twilight-"That sounds great!"

Bruno-"Uh Twilight. Not to be rude but we need to get those maps really fast."

Twilight-"Oh sorry Bruno. Cadence would you mind going to the Archives with me in case some stuff that we need may need the presence of Royalty there?"

Cadence-"Don't worry about that. Your brother is waiting there for that reason. I overheard your friend mention needing supplies so I'll stock up on some more for everyone and I'll meet you at the station before the train leaves and afterwards I'd like to get to know your new friend and I'll have something special for the train ride to Hayloft Bay. OK?"

Twilight-"Sounds good. Catch you later."

As Cadence heads to town to get more supplies for the trip and after running for 20 minutes, Bruno and Twilight finally Arrive at the Canterlot Archives and Shining Armor is there to welcome them and help get them their maps.

Shining Armor-"Twiley over here!"

Twilight-"Hey Brother. It's good to see you again but we're in a hurry to get the maps and get back to our train. Let's make this quick OK."

Shining Armor-"I've already gotten every map of Amestris I could find since this morning and here they are."

Bruno-"That's great. We'll take them all and be on our way."

Bruno then uses his vortex to store the maps in his dimension and then they hurry back to the train station.

Twilight-"Thanks for the maps brother but we have to go if we want to catch the train."

Shining Armor-"How about I give you both a lift there?"

Bruno-"How will you pull that off?"

Shining Armor-"Like this." He lets out a loud whistle!

Shining armor then summons a chariot flown by two pairs of Pegasus ponies from the royal guard to get them back to the station.

Bruno-"Well that shut me up."

Shining Armor-"If we take this we'll get to the station in ten minutes flat. Hurry and get on!"

Twilight-"Thanks Brother."

As Twilight, Shining Armor and Bruno get on the chariot they are flown off to the train station and meanwhile in the Canterlot market the others are just finishing up getting their supplies for the trip. Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash had gotten food that will last everyone for two weeks and Rarity had gotten some blankets and knowing her they were top quality stuff and Cadence was also getting food and something special for the train ride to the West coast. After 10 minutes Bruno, Twilight and her brother arrive at the station with 25 minutes to spare and they end up seeing the surprise that she had planed for the train ride.

Shining Armor-"Well we're here and with plenty of time to spare."

Twilight-"Thanks brother. I really appreciate the help out. OH the train is here and...what is that on the end of it?"

Shining Armor-"Wait, are those the private cars used for when members of royalty need to travel by train?"

Bruno-"Could this be the surprise that I overheard Cadence telling you about earlier?"

Twilight-"That must be it. There's like 4 of these cars and they're a bit bigger than the normal cars we usually go on. She must have decided to have these for us since we'll be traveling for 2 days and wanted to make our trip better for everypony. That was real nice of her to do that."

Bruno-"This is great. I'll get everything setup inside. let me know when your friends have arrived with the supplies so I can store them in my dimension."

Twilight-"No problem. By the way brother. What did Cadence say to convince you to let her come with us instead of the royal guards?"

Shining Armor-"Well..."(Flashback to yesterday afternoon)

Cadence-"Look if I go with them I'll be much better than the four guards you were sending in the first place and my magic is much stronger than twice the number of guards you had."

Shining Armor-"No way and even if you are stronger than the guards it's still only one of you compared to four of them."

Cadence-"Given what you told me earlier, if this creature got real close to Aunt Celestia then it's better if you kept more guards here in Canterlot in case this 'thing' comes back to Canterlot and tries something that might put others in danger."

Shining Armor-"You do have a good point on all those things but it's going to take a lot more to convince me to let you go."

Cadence-"Will this convince you?"

Cadence then kisses him and after that 'one thing leads to another' and afterwards Shining Armor is convinced to let her go. (F.Y.I. They made out with each other.)

(End of flashback)

Twilight-"Brother. What did Cadence say to you?"

Shining Armor-"Uh Let's just say that she and I needed to bang out some details before I felt comfortable about letting her come instead of the guards I planned on using in the first place and this way I'll have more guards ready in case that 'creature' comes back to Canterlot."

Twilight-"That's true. Better safe than sorry. Oh everyone's back from getting supplies and WOW they really did stock up on a lot! Hey everyone, Over here!"

Shining Armor(thinking)-"Whoa, I'm glad she didn't figure out what really happened otherwise she'd be scarred for life if she knew the truth."

Applejack-"Hey Twilight we're back and I managed to get plenty of food for the trip."

Fluttershy-"Oh were you the one who was supposed to get the food? I also got some food from the market too."

Rainbow Dash-"I also got some food too."

Pinkie Pie-"Well the food I got came from a bakery and I got pies, doughnuts, muffins. cookies and even bread for us to eat too."

Rarity-"Well I managed to get some blankets and pillows for when we need to sleep in Amestris and they're the are of the finest materials ever made. I figured that then ones there are so old that they might break apart or unravel from the effects of time or worse they might have MOLD on them, which is why I figured fresh ones would be better and I also bought a lot of drinks like soda, juice, cider and lemonade for if we get parched during the trip. Wait, are those the royal train cars I see on our train? I can't believe that Princess Celestia would be so generous as to make this trip a pleasant one for all of us."

Twilight-"Princess Celestia didn't get us those cars. Cadence did that."

Applejack-"Cadence? Your sister-in-law?"

Rainbow Dash-"I thought you told us she was in Las Pegasus til the day after tomorrow?"

Twilight-"She came back two days ago and she is coming with us too."

Fluttershy-"Why is she coming?"

Twilight-"Well it turns out that her magic is a lot stronger than the four guards that were supposed to come with us and after she and brother had a long talk he felt that the guards would be better off here in Canterlot in case the one controlled the manticores ever came back to Canterlot."

Applejack-"That would make sense considering that HE got that close to the princess and was able to get in and out of Canterlot without being spotted by the guards."

Twilight-"Well it's all for the better. Oh here comes Cadence now. Cadence over here!"

Cadence-"Hey Twilight. I'm back with some food and drinks for the ride. Oh it seems like you all decided to get pretty much the same things too. Well at least we'll have more than enough to last a while. I'll need some help getting all this on board."

Twilight-"No problem. Bruno is going to handle packing this stuff. Bruno can you come out here please? We need your help."

Bruno-"I'm here and I'll get things pac...whoa that's a lot of food you all got! I think that you all overbought but it's better to be safe than sorry when it comes to needing food considering how long we'll be away. Bring the carts over here please."

Bruno then casts a spell that contains the food in a barrier so it won't spoil and then uses the vortex in his eye to store it for later.

Cadence-"So that's one of his special powers. I was hoping to see his use of Alchemy but I figured I can see that later."

Rarity-"Bruno I hope you don't mind but I decided to get some blankets and pillows for when we need to sleep in Amestris. It's unlikely that stuff like that would have lasted 1500 years and if they did it would most likely to either fall apart or contain MOLD from the effects of time. Am i right?"

Bruno-"Well you're not wrong on that matter but it's always good to prepared for whatever comes our way. I'll store them in my dimension for later."

Fluttershy-"So how long until we leave?"

Bruno-"I'd say about 5 minutes so let's get on board now."

Haru-"Hold on son! Wait for us!"

Bruno-"Oh sorry Dad. Did you all get something to eat?"

Lyra-"Dad took us to this diner in town and...well let's just say that we're all stuffed."

Applebloom-"OH I can't eat another bite."

Scootaloo-"I feel like my belly is going to explode."

Sweetie Belle-"I feel like taking a nap after eating that much."

Bruno-"Well it seems like you all enjoyed yourselves well but now we must get on the train so we can leave soon."

Just as they are about to board the train Princess comes to the station to give them a speech for their trip.

Shining Armor-"Hold on. Princess Celestia is coming over here."

Twilight-"I think she wants to give us a proper send off."

Bruno-"I guess we have time for her."

Princess Celestia-"Before you all leave I want to say something to all of you."

Twilight-"What is it Princess?"

Princess Celestia-"I want you all to know that I'm not only proud of you for doing this brave mission but to also tell you that I'm counting on you to make sure that you all stay safe and don't do anything reckless that might put any of you in any kind of danger. If any of you feel the need to either back out now or have the need to leave Amestris at anytime when you feel like your lives might be in danger and the mission for getting what we need to make the Philosophers stone is cut short then I will not hold any of those decisions against you and there will be no shame in those actions. Good luck 'My Little Ponies'. The fate of not only Equestria but the entire world is depending on you. You all take very good care of yourselves."

Twilight-"Thanks Princess and we'll be fine."

Cadence-"We won't let you down Aunt Celestia."

Spike-"Hey is Zetsu here yet?"

Bruno-"OH that reminds me. Hey Zetsu we're about to leave now! Where are you?"

Black Zetsu-"There's no need to yell. Were here now."  
White Zetsu-". We were talking to the Princess earlier before you arrived and we waited til you were about to leave to come out."

Cadence-"What in Equestria is that thing?

Twilight-"I'll explain him to you later while we're on the train."

Train conductor-"All aboard! The train will depart in two minutes."

Bruno-"Alright everypony let's go now."

As they are boarding the train Twilight says goodbye to her brother and Celestia says something to the rest of them.

Shining Armor-"You take care of yourself Twiley and promise me you will stay safe. OK?"

Twilight-"I promise big brother and will you make sure to tell Mom and Dad about this when they get back from their trip. I don't want them to worry too much."

Shining Armor-"I'll be sure to do that too."

After saying what they needed to say Twilight and her brother give each other a big hug.

Princess Celestia-"If you need to tell me anything you see that is important then make sure to have Spike send it out and I will respond as soon as I can. Good luck to all of you."

As the train departs they all wave to each other until the train is out of sight of each other. However their entire conversation was overheard by one of the unknown humans eyes that he had planted all over Canterlot and he then plans his next move for the ponies.

Unknown Human-"So they plan to go to Amestris huh? Well little do they know that I've had a few things waiting for the ponies in the event they decided to go there but just to be safe I'll awaken my humonculi from hibernation but since I'm here in Equestria it might take me some time for my power to reach them and I won't release HIM unless I need to."

Meanwhile on the train.

After the train departs Canterlot the others get settled for the two day train ride to the west coast and from there to Amestris. Bruno then begins to plan what to do from there and Twilight explains to Cadence about Bruno's powers and Zetsu and after hearing all that she was stunned.

Cadence-"Wow! That's a lot to take in but at least those powers are on our side."

Twilight-"I couldn't agree with you more Cadence. So does anypony know what the stops are for this train and where we'll be at the 1 hour stop?"

Bruno-"I just spoke to the conductor and he said that each of the stops is about 8 hours apart minus the time it takes for those who are getting on and off the train and by the way you are not going to believe this."

Twilight-"What is it Bruno?"

Bruno-"The stop with the one hour layover is none other than Las Pegasus itself."

Rarity-"Did you say Las Pegasus?" I've always wanted to see that place since I was little. The bright lights and Large buildings and all those famous shows."

Cadence-"Don't forget about the Casinos there. There are a lot of them while I was there."

Rainbow Dash-"Do you think we'll have time to play at one of those casinos while we're there?"

Cadence-"Well there are a few casinos close to the station that we can check out for a bit."

Twilight-"This is a mission. Not a vacation. We should be focused on what we need to do."

Bruno-"Relax Twilight and enjoy the ride. I think that we'll have some time to relax and depending on what time we get there we can grab something to eat and maybe I'll hit the casinos for a bit."

Lyra-"You're not going to gamble again, are you Brother?"

Bruno-"Don't worry sis. I never lost one bit the day we won all that money betting on the Wonderbolts. We made a killing on that day!"

Haru-"I was wondering how much did you end up winning with the money that your mother and I left for you?"

Bruno-"Well I was there for about 7 hours and after calculating which of the Wonderbolts had the best odds, Over all I ended up winning well over twenty million bits."

They all say-"YOU WON HOW MUCH?"

Bruno-"I figured you would be surprised by that amount which is why I told you all when we first met that Lyra and I had a lot of money that would last us a very long time."

Twilight-"Wow! I honestly did not see that coming."

Haru-"Hah! What my son has is nothing compared to what my family has since they have more money than my son has and no matter how much of that money I could have ended up with it's a small price to pay for leaving my father and being with the mare that I love. Bruno your mother meant more to me then any of that and I mean it with all my heart."

Bruno-"That's a very nice thing to hear from you Dad. So what are we going to do for the next 48 hours while we're on this train? Any ideas?"

Twilight-"Well we could research those Alchemy books we brought with us."

Haru-"Actually I was thinking I could tell you all a bit about my families bloodline and my wife's family too since you all witnessed Lyra's powers in the past few days. Would that be OK with all of you? It would take the mystery out of all the things you saw."

Pinkie Pie-"OH that would be cool."

Rarity-"It would be interesting to know how the Star Pony Family got the rank of nobility."

Twilight-"I would be very interested to know a bit about your family history."

Bruno-"It would be nice to know a bit about Mom's side of the family since she never told us anything, But dad didn't you already tell us about your side of the family to me Lyra and Vince before?"

Haru-"Well I didn't tell you the whole thing but if you all listen I'll tell you more and stuff that you might be shocked to learn."

Lyra-"I do want to know where mom did come from. Let's hear it."

As the ponies gather around to hear Haru's story about his and his wife's family bloodline he starts things off with a history lesson that Twilight and the others listen to."

Haru-"Before I tell you everything I want to ask you if any of you are familiar with a group of warrior ponies known as The Shoku knights"?

Twilight-"The Shoku knights? I remember reading about them in school. They were a group of 4 legendary Warrior ponies that saved the world about 1200 years ago and that they served under Princess Celestia."

Haru-"Well it seems you know a lot about it Twilight. How about you tell everyone what you know and if you want me to finish the rest then let me know."

Twilight-"OK. Well I remember from Princess Celestia that there were 4 of them and each of them was a different type of pony. First there was unicorn named 'Leto, of the sages', then there was a Pegasus named 'Sirocco, of the sky', an earth pony named 'Shodai, of the deep forest' and an alicorn named 'Tenzo the Quicksilver' and they were the strongest of the ponies that ever protected Equestria with Princess Celestia and Princess Luna and that they were the guardians of the 10 legendary treasures of Equestria. Leto was extremely skilled in every form of magic and even mastered spells that were now today deemed forbidden because of the side effects that happens to those who cast spells like them and also that Leto was Starswirl the bearded's great-great-grandfather. Sirocco was a skilled Pegasus and was able to control the weather with a simple flap of a wing, Shodai was the most unusual of them because he had the power to control the 5 elements of nature with his mind and body such as Lighting, Fire, Water, Wind and earth. He even had the power to combine some of the elements together to form new elements. For example he combined the earth and water together to make the wood element which he used to grow trees and the Crystal element which is formed my combining earth, fire and water together to form crystals which were used for stuff like art and Jewelery. However those are the only elements I know of that he used from the strange power that resided within his body. Some say he was the most powerful of the group because since his power could not be explained as to what it was. Now Tenzo was one of the strongest of the 4 and the one that could not be forgotten. He was the not only leader of the Shoku knights be he was also leader a clan of ponies from his bloodline and like the Star pony family also bared a birthmark. His clan was known as the Anavel clan, Anavel being the family name and they were well known through out all of Equestria. For a long time they helped to protect Equestria with their awesome power and because of their strength there was no need for Princess Celestia and Luna to use the Elements of Harmony. However at some point in history, Tenzo became a bit to ambitious in his desire to become even stronger then his comrades and the rest of the group felt uneasy about him. One night he secretly conspired with those from his clan to take over Equestria given that he and his clan combined possessed special and powerful magic that could surpass both Luna and Celestia together but because of his plan, the rest of his clan shunned him and exiled him from the clan and when Luna, Celestia and the rest of the Shoku knights got wind of this they gave him a choice to either leave Equestria or be locked up in Prison for treason. He decided to leave and never returned."

Rarity-"Wow I never knew that much of it."

Rainbow Dash-"I would have loved to meet the great Sirocco himself."

Fluttershy-"Rainbow did you forget that Sirocco was a girl?"

Rainbow Dash-"Oh that's right. Back in School I was more of an athlete than a reader. I should have payed more attention back in school but now I know and will remember that."

Applejack-"lots of ponies have made that mistake too. So don't be ashamed of that."

Rarity-"What were the 10 legendary treasures? Were the Elements of harmony part of those treasures?"

Twilight-"All I know from Princess Celestia is that they are objects with special powers some are considered to be weapons too and no, the Elements of Harmony were not part of them."

Pinkie Pie-"Is that all there is to the story?"

Twilight-"No there's more and it gets more interesting from here."

Bruno-"When do we get to hearing about our family history?"

Haru-"Soon son. Now let Twilight finish. Go on Twilight."

Twilight-"Thanks Haru. Now were was I? Oh yeah. Tenzo had plotted to take over Equestria but he was banished from Equestria forever. Or was he? Princess Celestia told me that after he had left he was gone for over a year and one night he came back to Equestria and he decided to go along with his plan to take over Equestria but he could not do it alone. Since he could not get his clan to go with his plan he resorted to doing something so dreadful that it was known through out Equestria to this day. He killed his entire clan and took all their powers so he could become stronger than his former comrades and Celestia and Luna put together. That day from then on was known as 'The Anavel Massacre' and it started a war between him and Equestria."

Fluttershy-"He killed his own Family in cold blood. How awful."

Spike-"How did he take the powers of his entire clan?"

Twilight-"I'm not really sure on that. Princess Celestia never told me that part."

Haru-"I might be able to fill in that for you. Tenzo, while in exile somehow learned a spell that can extract a soul from any living body and infuse any powers within it into his own body. That's how he did it and he's the only one who knows how to use that spell in all of Equestria. When the spell takes the soul from a living body the physical body dies quickly and feels no pain from it. When Princess Celestia discovered what the spell does she deemed it forbidden. Twilight, You said that forbidden spells have some kind of side effect for those that cast it. Well this spell has no side effect to it and that's why it's the most dangerous spell in existence."

After Haru mentioned that part of the story the other ponies were shocked beyond belief that a spell like that was ever made.

Applejack-"Oh my goodness! I never knew a spell like that existed!"

Fluttershy-"I find him and that spell even scarier than the thing that controlled the manticores."

Twilight-"I guess that's why she didn't tell me that part."

Rainbow Dash-"What happened next?"

Haru-"How about I tell this part Twilight?"

Twilight-"OK."

Haru-"Tenzo not only took the souls of his clan he also went after the family members of Leto, Sirocco and Shodai and he managed to kill a few of each of them in the process and enraged by this they decided to fight back against him but then they found out that he decided to go after Celestia and Luna and acquire their powers too but little did he know that they set a trap for him. From then on they fought him day and night for almost two years and were at the point where they might lose to him but then Celestia and Luna decided to use the Elements of Harmony on him but his strength was so powerful they had little effect on him and then Shodai, Leto and Sirocco managed to gather the 10 treasures together and with the treasures, their power and the Elements of harmony they barley managed to defeat him but at the cost of Sirocco, Leto and Shodai losing their lives."

Twilight-"I remember that but how was it that they died saving Equestria?"

Haru-"You see all that power put together was not enough to defeat him so the three of them put their life energy into their attack and as a result Tenzo was not killed but the souls he had taken were set free and his body was sealed in some kind of coffin and was buried somewhere in the world. However when the trio used their life energy it had shortened their lifespan to the point where they only had 1 week left to live and from then on they decided to die in various locations in Equestria."

Spike-"What did happen to them after that and what happened to the souls of his victims?"

Haru-"Well like I said earlier when the soul is taken from the living body the physical body dies quickly and as for the remaining Shoku knight's this is what happened when they died, Sirocco's body was cremated and her ashes were spread across various bodies of water such as lakes, ponds and the ocean so that when other Pegasi used the water to make clouds a piece of her and her powers would be infused into the clouds for good luck and protection. Leto was buried somewhere deep underground in what is now known as Canterlot and as for Shodai he used that last of his energy to turn his body into what is now known as the Sacred Tree of what is still known as Shodai Village that is out towards the east coast of Equestria. Some say that his body still exists within the tree to this day."

Twilight-"That's the Giant tree out to the east."

Lyra-"We visited that town during our travels through Equestria after we left horseshoe bay 4 years ago. That tree is gigantic!"

Bruno-"That was very interesting to hear the whole story but what does this have to do with our family History, Dad?"

Haru-"Well you see Shodai's unknown power made his body super strong and super fast for an earth pony."

Bruno-"I know that but what are you saying?"

Haru-"Well if you remember your mother also had that same strength and speed and Lyra inherited that power too, Right?"

Bruno-"I remember because I was somewhat surprised by that. Why do you ask?"

Haru-"Well brace your self for what I'm about to tell you all and that goes for you two. The Reason is like you 2 and your brother, your mother had those powers is because she was a direct descendent of Shodai himself."

After the ponies heard what Haru just said about his wife's side of the family they were speechless but Haru ended up revealing something more shocking that the others will remember from that day on.

Bruno & Lyra-"WHAT!"

Twilight-"Your wife is related to Shodai?" I can't believe that we are friends with Shodai's direct descendents."

Spike-"This is so amazing!"

Bruno-"I can't believe Mom never told us that."

Haru-"Well if all of you were shocked by what I just told you then your are in for a big surprise for what come next."

Rarity-"What else could you tell us that could be better than what you just mentioned?"

Haru-"Well and and you might want to stay seated for this. You see the reason I was born as an alicorn is because my mother was a Pegasus and my Father was a unicorn."

Lyra-"Why would we need to stay seated for that Dad?"

Haru-"It's because My mother was a direct descendent of Sirocco and my Father was a direct descendent of Leto too. Which makes Lyra, Bruno and Vince the descendents of 3 of the 4 Shoku knights."

After hearing that Bruno and Lyra are the living descendents of 3 of the Shoku knights their views of them begin to change for the better.

Cadence-"No way! It's like the 3 of them have reincarnated into the two of you."

Bruno-"How come you never told us that Dad?"

Haru-"I figured that it would be better if I told you that when you were a little older but when Twilight told me about Lyra's strength and speed when she fought the manticores, I had no idea that her powers had awakened while she was this young and your Mother's powers didn't awaken until she was a young adult."

Twilight-"Haru, I think I know why Lyra's powers awakened at this age. It's because of your family bloodline. You carry the blood of Sirocco and Leto in you and since their blood is in Lyra too then whatever powers their bloodline had must have caused them to awaken inside her too. Do you see what I mean?"

Haru-"That does make sense. I'm not even sure that I have any special powers that I may have inherited from them too. At least I never tried to find out for myself. Well anyway that's the story of mine and my wife's family history and if you have any questions about it then just ask."

Spike-"I was wondering if any of Tenzo's family survived being killed by him that night and if so how do we know if we spot one of his descendents in Equestria?"

Haru-"I'm not sure of that myself. It was unknown if any of his family did survive at all."

Twilight-"I might be able to answer that. I said earlier that his family like the star pony family were born with a birth mark on them. I remember what that mark looks like and I can draw it from memory."

(note from author)-(Google 'Flamel Cross' to see what I'm using as the 'mark' for this story.)

Twilight then draws out the mark and it looks like a cross with a snake wrapped around it and at the top of the cross is a crown with wings. After everyone saw the mark Bruno and Lyra became shocked because recognize where they saw that birthmark before."

Cadence-"So that's the mark of Anavel clan. It looks a bit strange. Uh, Bruno, Why do you looked so shocked to see that mark?"

Bruno-"I'll tell you why but you might want to sit for this part. Do you all remember the way Lyra and I fought against those manticores without magic but with punching and kicking?"

Twilight-"Yeah. You said that during your travels you and Lyra met an alicorn in the south and she not only taught you how to fight but she also taught you how to and I quote 'Take your magic to the next level'. Why do you ask?"

Bruno-"She was our teacher and not only did she teach us on how learn hoof to hoof combat but she had the exact same mark on her that you drew on that piece of paper."

They all say-"What!"

Haru-"Son are you sure she had that mark on her?"

Bruno-"I'm 100% sure on this. That was the mark she had."

Twilight-"That means your teacher is a direct descendant of Tenzo and the soul survivor of the Anavel family. This is amazing! I should tell Princess Celestia about this as soon as possible."

Bruno-"No, please don't do that!"

Twilight-"Why not?"

Bruno-"From the amount of time we spent with her it looked like that she kept who she really was a secret and she lived somewhat of a private life and it looked like she was happy about that and we respected her privacy during the 7 months we lived with her. Trust me when I say that it would be best to not tell the Princess about this until she feels ready to come out into the open If you want to tell Celestia about our family bloodline then that's OK but as for teacher I ask that you leave her out of your letters. Please Twilight?"

Twilight-"Alright Bruno. I'll respect your wishes and leave her out of it."

Bruno-"Thank you."

Spike-"Well I guess that answers my question. Anyway I'm going to get a bite to eat from the dining car. Anyone want to join me?"

Pinkie Pie-"Oh, I'll join you. Hearing that story made me hungry."

Rarity-"Oh I think I'll join you too."

Fluttershy-"I'm in."

Rainbow Dash-"I'm a bit famished my self."

Applejack-"I love the food they serve on the train. I'll join too."

Applebloom-"No thank you! I'm still stuffed from earlier."

Sweetie Bell-"Me too."

Scootaloo-"Me three."

Lyra-"I think I'll go take a nap since I had to get up really early."

Cadence-"I'll stay here instead and eat later."

Bruno-"Dad what kind of diner did you take the girls to eat at that made them so full?"

Haru-"Um, it was the kind with an all you can eat Buffet."

Bruno-"Really Dad? You took them there? Well at least they'll be full til dinner. Anyway I think I'll look at those maps to plot the quickest route across the ocean on the day I'll fly all of us there."

Twilight-"Do you want my help Bruno?"

Bruno-"Sure if you really want to."

Haru-"I'm going to take a nap myself. Wake me when it's time for dinner OK son."

Bruno-"Sure thing Dad."

Twilight-"Well it seems like you and your dad are getting along better than before. What changed between you two or are you just being nice to him in front Lyra?"

Bruno-"Well the night he stayed with us I was on my way to bed and I heard him crying and when I went to check it out he was in tears over Mom being gone and from that I realized that despite my earlier feelings he truly did love mom and he never stopped thinking about us while he was gone. Despite some of the anger I still have towards him leaving us a part of me was glad to have him back in our lives."

Twilight-"I glad that you and your Dad are OK now. By the way you never told me what your mother looks like."

Cadence-"I'd like to see that too if that's OK?"

Bruno-"Oh sorry. I have a picture of her and the rest of us in my bag. Now were is that Picture? Oh here it is. This was taken before our brother disappeared so you can see what he and our mother look like. That's here right there."

Bruno then shows the picture to Twilight and Cadence he points to his mother. She has a tan coat and an emerald green mane and tail and is the same height as Princess Luna and her eye color is as red as a fire ruby.

Cadence-"Wow. That's your mother Bruno?"

Twilight-"She's very beautiful for an earth pony. Oh is that your brother over there?"

Vince is the same height as Bruno and has the same color coat and mane as his mother but he has his father's purple eyes."

Bruno-"Yep that's my big brother Vince."

Cadence-"Wow! He looks a bit like you. Only his mane is as messy as your sisters."

Twilight-"Judging by this Pic you look more like your father then you do your mother. You have her eyes but the rest of you looks like your Dad. How uncanny."

Bruno-"Well that's my family for you. Like parent like son and daughter. I should get started on researching those maps now since we have 2 days of traveling by train ahead of us."

Twilight-"I agree. Let's get to work."

Cadence-"I'll help you guys too."

Bruno-"Sure the more help the better."

As Bruno, Twilight and Cadence begin researching the maps of Amestris the rest of the gang is enjoying their lunch in the dining car and Lyra and the Cutie Mark Crusaders are resting from the big breakfast they had in Canterlot. Over the next few hours Bruno, Cadence and Twilight finish studying the maps and have made a plan on the day they leave the west coast for Amestris and they realize that it's gotten late and everyone has gone to bed and they decide to do the same too but Twilight decides to send a letter to Princess Celestia about what she heard about Bruno's family history but leaves out the details of Bruno and Lyra's teacher and her origins for Bruno.

Twilight-"Spike take a letter and I'll make this one quick so we can get some sleep."

Spike-"OK Twilight."

Twilight's letter to Celestia-"Dear Princess Celestia, So far everyone is enjoying the train ride and we're all in some way excited to go and see Amestris and also Bruno's Father had decided to tell everyone about his and his late wife's family history but in order to understand all that we all had to hear the story about the 'Shoku Knights', Tenzo and the Anavel Massacre and after Haru and I told the story he finally revealed that his wife was a direct descendant of Shodai and Haru's Mother was a descendant of Sirocco and Haru's Father was a descendant of Leto and after hearing all that we all realized that Bruno, Lyra and their brother are basically the living incarnations of three of the four 'Shoku Knights' and believe me when I say that everyone was 100% shocked beyond imagination. I'm sure that after reading this letter you might feel the same way too. I'll continue to keep you up to date with anymore interesting things we either hear or see while we're in transit and while we're in Amestris and we promise to stay safe. Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle."

Spike then breathes his green fire to send Princess Celestia and then he and Twilight decide to go to sleep for the night.

Twilight-"Good night Spike."

Spike-"(Yawns) Good night Twilight."

Over the next day they were riding comfortably through the Haystack Desert until they stopped for the 1 hour layover in none other than Las Pegasus.

Twilight-"Look everypony! We're in the Haystack Desert and that means Las Pegasus is the next stop on the way."

Rarity-"Oh I can't wait to see Las Pegasus. I'm so excited!"

Fluttershy-"How long til we get there?"

Bruno-"The conductor says we'll be there in about 5 minutes and when we get there we'll have 1 hour til we have to leave again so if you want to have a look around please stay close to the station and be sure to keep track of the time you have. OK?"

Fluttershy-"We'll be careful of the time we have but what are you going to do when we get there Bruno?"

Lyra-"Are you going to gamble again brother?"

Bruno-"I'll play a game or 2 to stock up on some more money for us."

Haru-"Son I'm worried that you might develop an addiction to gambling if you keep this up and I don't want you to lose that money you won in the first place."

Bruno-"This will be the second time I've ever done any gambling and I'm never going to become addicted to this because unlike others who have a gambling problem from just guessing their bets I always do a lot of hard calculations and make bets on the results I know are guaranteed to be winners and on top of that I always had the will power to quit at anytime. So don't worry about me Dad. I'll be just fine."

Lyra-"It's true Dad. After he won the jackpot from betting on the Wonderbolts he decided to quit and walk away without regret."

Haru-"Well OK son but I'll come with you just to be safe."

Bruno-"Whatever makes you feel better Dad."

Train conductor-"Here's our next stop, Las Pegasus!"

Rarity-"Oh Oh we're here!"

As the ponies train stops at Las Pegasus they decide to take a quick look at the sights before they had to leave again for Hayloft Bay.

Bruno-"Now please stay close to the station so we'll be ready to leave and stay together and Zetsu why don't you come with us and join in on winning some money."

White Zetsu-"Sure Why not."  
Black Zetsu-"I see no down side in having some fun around here."

Spike-"Count me in too. I'll be coming to the casino with you."

Twilight-"We will. Come on everypony let's take a look around."

As Twilight and her friends decide to see around the city, Cadence, Spike, Zetsu, Bruno and his father decide to hit the casinos for a quick game.

Las Pegasus mini arc part 1-The Spa.

Twilight and her friends are discussing on where to go for their brief stop in Las Pegasus and after talking about it for about 5 minutes they all decided to go to a health spa to unwind from being cooped up on the train but they had to make it quick.

Rarity-So it's settled, we'll all be going to a health spa for our break while we're here so let's treat ourselves right."

They all say-"Let's go!"

The ponies arrive at the health spa and decide to get the works. Massages, facials, herbal baths, hoof filing and for the unicorns a horn filing to help take the edge off from the really long train ride and they are feeling well relaxed.

First the massages with facials and the Horn/hoof filings.

Rarity-"Oh this massage feels so good that I feel like passing out from it."

Twilight-"I agree this feels better that the ones we usually get back in Ponyville."

Fluttershy-"Now you know that Aloe and Lotus are just a good as the ones here."

Rainbow Dash-"I may not be into these kind of things but, what the hay I'll enjoy it for now."

Applejack-"Ditto to that Rainbow."

Pinkie Pie-"Um, When to we have to leave again?"

Lyra-"Well we've been here for about 10 minutes and it took 5 minutes to walk here from the station so I think we can stay here for another 30 minutes at the most so let's make sure we're all ready to leave when the time comes and we'll meet the others there."

Applebloom-"I'm sure we have plenty of time."

Scootaloo-"Let's not worry about this now."

Sweetie Belle-"I agree! Oh please Don't stop with the rubbing."

After their massages they then get their hooves filed and the unicorns get their horns filed and after having that done with the massages which took 15 minutes they all take a 10 minute herbal bath to finish things up and then they decide to leave for the station to catch their train and meet up with Bruno and the others.

Last, the herbal baths.

Twilight-"Oh this feels nice. I was in desperate need of a bath since yesterday."

Rarity-"I could not agree with you more on that."

Rainbow Dash-"Me too."

Fluttershy-"I wonder what kind of herbs they put in these baths?"

Applejack-"I don't know and I don't care. I just want to feel better."

Pinkie Pie-"I feel so relaxed in this bath."

Cutie Mark Crusaders(FYI Lyra is now a member)-"This feels so great!"

Lyra-"We should finish up in about 5 minutes and then get dried off and ready to go soon."

As the others finish up they get dried off and pay the bill and then leave for the station.

Las Pegasus mini arc part 2- The casino.

As Cadence, Spike, Zetsu, Bruno and his father arrive at one of the casinos they each decide to play a different game to try and win some money. Spike decides to hit the Craps table, Haru goes with Bruno to the area that deals with betting on sporting events and Cadence and Zetsu decide to play the Poker tables til they have to leave for the station.

Bruno-"So what does everyone want to play? It took 5 minutes to get here so if we stay for 45 minutes at the most we can make it back to the train in time."

Spike-"I think I'll try something in this guide called Craps. That's the dice game right?"

Cadence-"That's the one Spike. I think I'll hit the poker tables. Do you want to join me Zetsu?"

White Zetsu-"I think that would be nice."  
Black Zetsu-"Do we need any money?"

Cadence-"I'll give you some of mine to play with."

Bruno-"Well I'm going to hit the slot machines. Care to join me Dad?"

Haru-"Sure, why not. I could use a little down time."

Part 1-Spike at the craps table.

Spike-"Alright I put 10 bits on the pass line."

Craps attendant-"Sir the minimum is 15 bits and are you over 21 years old?"

Spike-"No but doesn't that rule only apply to ponies? I mean you never had a dragon play in any of these casinos before have you?"

Craps Attendant-"Good point sir. We've never had a dragon play in a casino before so go ahead and place your bet sir."

Spike-"OK then. I believe I said 15 bits on the pass line."

Craps attendant-"Very good sir. Do you wish to throw the dice your self or would you like someone else to do that?"

Spike-"I'll throw it. Come on pass line!"

After he and the others place their bets, Spike then throws the dice and it lands on the pass line and Spike, a pony and a griffin win their money."

Craps Attendant-"11 on the pass line! Winner get 11 times their bet."

Spike-"OH YEAH! I WON! Now let's see 11 times 15 is...165 Bits! Wow that's a lot! Hey, this time I'll place 20 bits on the pass line."

Craps attendant-"Very good sir."

Spike then rolls the dice and once again he wins.

Craps Attendant-"Boxcars on the pass line! Winners get 12 times the amount they bet."

Spike-"12 times! Let's see 12 times 20, if I take 10 and multiply it by 20 i get 200 and if I take 2 and multiply it by 20 that makes 40. 200 plus 40 equals...240 and if you add the 145 bits from earlier I have 385 bits! Wow that's even more money than I thought!"

Griffin at table-"Hey everyone this dragon's on fire! I won and others did too. He's good luck!"

Spike-"I'm that lucky? Well then gather around everyone and watch me win! Let's try something a bit harder, Oh I know. Sir I'll place 50 bits on snake eyes at midnight!"

When the crowd around craps table hears Spikes bet they all gasp in fear at the same time and the attendant warns spike about that risky bet."

Craps Attendant-"Sir before you roll that dice I'm required by the casino and by the city of Las Pegasus to advise you that your bet is the riskiest bet of them all and by some chance you do win you will win 300 times what you bet. So I'll ask you one more time. Are you sure you want to place that bet?"

Spike(thinking)-"It's that risky? However if I win I'll get 300 times the bet. I'll have to make this bet count. I have 385 bits but I don't want to bet it all so I'll only bet a little more so that if I do lose I'll still have made a profit."

Craps attendant-"Sir. What's your choice? Bet or walk away?"

Spike-"I've been thinking hard about this and If I win I'll win 300 times what I bet. In that case I'll bet 350 bits on Snake eyes at midnight! NOW!"

Craps attendant-"OK. It's your money sir. Please roll the dice sir."

Spike-"(deep breaths) OK here goes nothing."

As Spike throws the dice everyone is holding their breath in hopes of the outcome of Spike's roll of the dice and the outcome is...(I will reveal the outcome near the end of this arc.)

Part 2-Cadence and Zetsu at the poker Tables.

Cadence-"So Zetsu do you know how to play poker at all?"

Black Zetsu-"Of course we do. It's easy to play  
White Zetsu-"After we came through the portal of truth with Bruno we also gained the truth so playing a game like this is beyond easy."

Cadence-"OK but stick with me and you will win a lot. Poker is my game."

As Cadence and Zetsu arrive at the poker table the other 2 players who happen to be none other than the Flim-Flam Brothers are surprised by someone from the royal family at the table but even more surprised by Zetsu appearance since no other pony has ever seen a pony like him ever.

Flim-"What in Equestria is that thing?"

Cadence-"He is my friend Zetsu and my bodyguard and you would be wise to show him the respect he deserves and he is here to play too."

Black Zetsu-"Thank you Cadence."  
White Zetsu-"We owe you one for that."

Cadence-"No problem and here's some money for you. Now let's start playing. Deal me in."

As Cadence and Zetsu take their seats they begin to play."

Poker dealer-"Ante in your bets. 20 Bits please."

As everyone places their bets they are each given 5 cards and then the game begins. Cadence and Zetsu look at their cards and so far they have really good hands and then they place their bets from then on.

Cadence-"I'll bet 10 bits."

Both sides of Zetsu-"Same here."

Flim-"Me too."

Flam-"Ditto."

As Cadence and Zetsu look at their cards they, unknown to each other, realize that they each have a good hand and decided to raise their bets to the maximum."

Cadence-"You know what I'm going all in. 200 bits!"

Zetsu-"I'm in too!"

Flam-"I'm out."

Flim-"Well I'm not losing to royalty. I'm all in too. Call it. Full house!"

Zetsu-"Four of a kind, all kings! My hand beats yours!"

Cadence-"Nice try Zetsu but I win this round. Four of a kind, All Aces! HAH!"

Flim and Flam-"No way!"

White Zetsu-"That was good Cadence."

Flim-"Wait. I know know who you are. Your Princess Mi Amore Cadenza. Princess Celestia's niece and I heard about your substantial winnings at that other casino from a week ago. While I have nothing but the utmost respect for your Aunt Celestia and Luna but I would love it if I could put a member of royalty in their place and Poker is the best place to do that. What do you say?"

Flam-"Brother are you crazy? I don't want you to risk our profits on her. She's a card shark."

Flim-"Don't worry brother I'm a card shark too and we managed to beat the other players too so beating her will be easy."

Cadence-"You're on. Dealer set us up now!"

Cadence and Zetsu get set-up to face the Flim-Flam brothers in a game of poker and the sparks between them start flying.

Cadence and Flim get their cards and the 'fight' begins.

Cadence-"I'll bet 10 bits."

Flim-"I'll see your 10 and raise you 30 bits."

White Zetsu-"He's not bluffing. Fold now. Trust me."

Cadence-"OK Zetsu, I trust you. I fold. What did you have?"

Flim-"I had a flush. All spades and that's the highest suit."

Cadence-"You were right Zetsu. All I had was three aces."

Black Zetsu-"I told you so. I can tell when he's bluffing or not."

Flam-"Brother you won. Now that you beat her we can leave."

Flim-"She gave up. It's not the same as beating her."

Cadence-"Listen to your brother. I will destroy you."

Flim-"We'll see about that. Bring it on!"

As Cadence and Flim go head to head in a game of poker we now go to Bruno and his Father at the slot machines.

Part 3-Father and son playing slots.

Bruno-"So let's hit the machines Dad."

Haru-"You know that those are the hardest to win at Son?"

Bruno-"Well I find a machine that's cheap to play but has the biggest jackpot of them all."

Haru-"Well from looking around I spotted that machine over there and it's only one bit per pull and the jackpot is over...WOW! It's over fifteen million Bits!"

Bruno-"Well that's the one for me. Let's go dad."

As Bruno and his dad go to the slot machines to play and after 45 minutes of winning and losing a few times he is down to his last bit he decides to keep going on."

Haru-"Son you should walk away now but It was fun while it lasted."

Bruno-"You're right, but I'll use this last bit just for fun anyway."

Bruno places his last bit in the machine and as they walk away he and his father notice something worth sticking around for.

End of Las Pegasus mini Arc.

As Twilight and her friends leave the Spa they head back to the station and when they arrive with 7 minutes to spare the find out that Bruno and the others had not arrived but they were not far behind.

Rarity-"Wow that was very relaxing but where are Bruno and the others?"

Twilight-"They should be her by now."

Pinkie Pie-"Oh here comes Spike and Cadence and Zetsu now."

Rarity-"What is Spike wearing?"

Twilight-"And what is he carrying behind him?"

Rainbow Dash-"It looks like he's wearing a black jacket with sunglasses and...Is that a large bag of money in the cart he's pulling behind him?"

Spike-"Hey guys did you enjoy your trip to the spa? Um how come are you all staring at me like that? Did I get my new Jacket dirty?"

Twilight-"Spike did you do any Gambling with the others and aren't you too young to gamble in the first place?"

Spike-"Well that would be true but since they never had a dragon play there I was able to get around the over 21 rule and I decided to try my luck at the Craps table. That's the one where you roll the dice. Anyway I managed to win about 3 times and when I was on a winning streak I decided to risk all my winnings on the scariest of all bets in that game and I ended up winning well over 90,000 bits and I decided to get this jacket and shades from the gift shop with some of my winnings and I was so lucky that others around me saw I was so lucky that they were winning over and over until it was time for me to go."

Twilight-"You won over 90,000 bits! That's amazing! You must have been very lucky to win that much money."

Spike-"Yeah I was oh by the way, Cadence why don't you tell the others who you and Zetsu ended up playing at the poker tables and Applejack and Applebloom you will not believe who it was."

Applejack-"Who did you play poker against?"

Cadence-"Well I was playing against the ones you call 'The Flim-Flam Brothers' and it didn't go well for me. I lost all my winnings."

Applebloom-"You ran into them and here of all places?"

AppleJack-"Oh those two again! I'll bet they cheated you out of your winnings just like they did during that cider contest back home."

Cadence-"Twilight told me about that and they only won that contest by letting their cider be made with bad apples and dirt mixed into their machine and no pony liked the taste of it and they ended up leaving town in disgrace from that and by the way they did not cheat during the poker game because if they did they would have been kicked out of the casino and you would have heard about that by now. We both played fair and it was going up and down and at a certain point I should have walked away while I was ahead but the rush went to my head and I ended up losing most of the money I brought with me. 750 bits but I'm OK with it and by the way as we were leaving Bruno and his dad the most luck of us all. OH here they come now."

Twilight-"What is that thing behind them? It's huge!"

Lyra-"Brother what is that you and Dad are pulling in those carts behind you?"

Bruno-"Well you see I decide to play on the slot machines for about 45 minutes and when I was down to my last bit I decided to use it and walk away but something good came out of that last bit."

Fluttershy-"What happened then?"

Bruno-"My last bit won me the jackpot and I won over fifteen Million bits! I pretty much cleaned out that casino! I was so excited that it felt like I was going to have a heart attack!"

Rainbow Dash-"NO...WAY!"

Rarity-"You won that much money!?"

Applebloom-"What are the odds of that happening?"

Twilight-"And how is it that you lost Cadence? Brother told me that you were so good at poker that you known as a card shark."

Cadence-"Well it turns out that those brothers are card sharks like me too and even with Zetsu by my side they were even tougher than the two of us put together but it's no big deal and they did play fair and square."

Applejack-"Well if you say so."

Conductor-"All aboard for departure in 2 minutes."

Bruno-"OK. Spike if you want I can store your winnings in my Dimension for now?"

Spike-"Sure, just let me write my name on the bag so yours doesn't get mixed up with your winnings."

Bruno-"Come on everyone let's get on board!"

After Spike marks his bag of money Bruno then uses his right eye and his and Spikes money in stored in his dimension for the duration of the trip and then they all board the train and then they're off to the west coast and then Amestris.

Twilight-"Wow! That was a great visit to Las Pegasus. We got to go to a relaxing spa then Spike and Bruno win a ton of money and Cadence played Poker against Flim & Flam but ended up losing to them but I think even after all that we all had a good time. Am I right?"

They all say-"It was the best trip ever!"

Bruno-"I just spoke to the conductor and it will be another 16 hours til we arrive at Hayloft Bay and when we arrive it will be around 8:AM so we can leave immediately for Amestris."

Twilight-"That sounds great!"

Fluttershy-"Oh I'm so excited to see Amestris. I wonder what it'll look like after 1500 years?"

Rainbow Dash-"That reminds me. Where in Amestris are you going to let us out? Somewhere in a city near the Palace or some small village?"

Bruno-"Well I figured I let you all out in the city close to the palace since the Libraries are close to them and they are where we need to go in the first place, but for those of you who want to have a look around the city please be sure to stay close and also when we're in the city we need to find a place to stay for when we need to sleep. I thought about looking for a house with lots of bedrooms so we all can stay in one place. How does that sound to you all?"

Twilight-"I think you've pretty much got everything planned for while we're in Amestris and I speak for everyone when I say that we trust your judgement on whatever happens next."

Bruno-"Thank you all for believing in me and by the way if by some chance we do get separated and end up getting lost to the point where we can't find our way back I have a very special surprise for that I would love to show you all for when we get there."

Rarity-"Sounds good."

As the others continue their train ride for a few hours they end up going to sleep for the rest of the night.

That night underneath Canterlot the unknown human continues to transmit his power to Amestris to awaken the humonculi he kept underneath Amestris for an unknown amount of time, until now.

Unknown Human-"Now awaken Lust, Envy, Pride, Gluttony, Wrath and Sloth and be prepared for some visitors coming to Amestris and be sure to keep an eye on them and not harm them."

Over the next few hours into the morning they arrive at Hayloft bay an hour earlier than they expected at 7:AM and as they disembark from the train Cadence decides to store the royal cars at the stations storage facility before Bruno decides to get the others ready for when he flies across the ocean to Amestris.

Bruno-"OK while all of you are waking up I'm going to get a boat for when I need to rest my wings and body from flying across the ocean. I want you all to meet me at dock 55 for when we are ready to leave so if any of you need to use the bathroom please go now. OK?"

Cadence-"Sounds good. I decided to have the royal cars stored here at the station's storage yard for when we need to go back to Canterlot and I managed to hire somepony to give all of us a non-stop train to Canterlot so the trip back will only take 36 hours instead of 2 days."

Twilight-"That's great. Now let's all go to the docks to meet Bruno for when he's ready. Now which dock did he say again?"

Applebloom-"It was dock 55 that we need to meet him at."

Twilight-"Thanks Applebloom. Now let's go everypony!"

As Twilight and the others walk through the city for an hour they finally arrive at the docks and then they spot Bruno waiting at Dock 55 and they are ready to go."

Bruno-"Twilight over here!"

Twilight-"Look there he is. Let's go."

As they arrive at dock 55 they notice the boat that Bruno bought for him to rest in during the flight across the ocean and the others get themselves ready to rest in Bruno's dimension for the trip.

Bruno-"Good that you made it so let's get ready. If all of you could stand close together I'll be sure to get all of you at once in my pocket dimension and although you will be able to see inside it for a few seconds and then the spell to freeze you in time inside their will kick in and I'll be ready to depart for Amestris. Including the time I need to rest the flight should take about 13 hours and we should arrive sometime between 8 and 9:PM and after that I'll let you all out."

Twilight-"Sounds good. Everyone gather together."

As the other gather close together Bruno then opens the vortex in his right eye and they all get sucked in with the boat and then before the time freeze spell kicks in they all see what the dimension looks like and they are shocked that is has an infinite amount of space and then the spell kicks in and he then departs for Amestris.

Bruno-"Well here goes nothing."

Bruno then shoots of into the distance and begins to fly for the for the first 5 hours but then he decides to rest for an hour and brings out the boat to rest in and the ocean waters are calm enough for him to lay down into the boat and after an hour and a half he then stores the boat in his dimension and then takes off again and after 5 more hours and another hour to rest and 3 more hours of flying he finally arrives at a town on the east coast of Amestris and decides to rest in one of the abandoned houses for the night so he can get up early to fly the rest of the way to the Central Kingdom of Amestris called Heliopolis where the palace is.

Bruno-"WOW! That was a LONG flight and I'm dead tired and since it's almost 10:PM I think I'll find a place to sleep so that this way I'll get up early and by the time I get to Heliopolis where the Palace is I can let the others out and then we can start our search for the info we need for making the Philosophers Stone. Oh look here's a nice house for me to sleep in."

As Bruno finds a bed he then goes to sleep for the night.

The next morning He wakes up around 5:30 and decides to fly off west towards Heliopolis.

Bruno-"(yawns) Well that was a nice long sleep and now it's time to head off to Heliopolis."

After flying for 4 hours he lands on the outer edge of the city and is surprised not only by the tall buildings but he also very shocked to see size of the Palace from 10 miles away and it was GIGANTIC.

Bruno-"Whoa the Palace is HUGE and that's from this distance. I must show the others."

Bruno then opens the vortex in his right eye and releases the others from his dimension and then breaks the time freeze spell around them."

Twilight-"Wow that dimension is really vast and...hey where are we?"

Rarity-"I remember being at the docks and then I saw Bruno's dimension and then it felt like my mind and body just stopped."

Bruno-"You were under my spell and frozen in time for a little over 24 hours and now I'd like to say, Welcome to Amestris! Look behind you and be surprised."

Rainbow Dash-"OH MY GOODNESS! Look at the size of that Palace!"

Applejack-"That palace is HUGE!"

Twilight-"I remember Princess Celestia telling me that the Amestrian Palace was larger than the one in Canterlot but I never pictured it to be that BIG!"

Bruno-"If you think it's that big well you all might be a bit off. You're all looking at it from 8 miles outside away on the edge of this city which is called Heliopolis."

(Author's note-"If you want to picture the size of the palace then remember the fortress from the anime "Bleach" called Las Noches only twice as tall twice as wide and twice as big and instead of 6 towers around it there are 5 and each tower is 1.5 miles high and 1/3rd of a mile in diameter and the palace in the center is about a mile high and it's circumference is 8 miles around and it's diameter is 4 miles across and the towers that surround the palace in a circle measure about 9.2 miles in circumference and in the center of the palace roof you see 5 smaller and skinnier towers that were taller than the towers surrounding the outside of the palace just like the Las Noches from "Bleach" but this version of mine has a secret that will be revealed later in the story.)

Fluttershy-"I've never seen so many tall buildings like them before and it looks like there are more buildings than Phillydelphia, Manehatten and Baltamare put together."

Pinkie Pie-"How will we know what to look for?"

Bruno-" I have a map of the city and we'll all be heading to each of the 5 libraries and collecting any books that have any info on Alchemy or any research notes that are connected to the 'Ariel Ruins'. Um Lyra are you OK?"

Lyra-"Brother don't you sense that awful feeling below us?"

Bruno-"What do you mean sis? I don't feel anyth...Wait I feel it now and it does feel odd."

Twilight-"What do you two sense below the ground?"

Lyra-"Well it's not evil but it feels big, like there's an ocean of souls beneath us."

Fluttershy-"I'm starting to feel scared now."

Bruno-"While it does feel scary I don't sense that what Lyra and I felt is in anyway a threat. It must be the souls of the fallen Amestrians that died from that day 1500 years ago. There's no need to fear from this. What can they do to us? Now come on and let's go."

Applejack-"Let's go everypony and be the first ponies to set foot in Amestris in over 1500 years."

The rest of them say-"Let's go!"

As they all begin to set foot towards the city of Heliopolis little do they know that a bunch of eyes formed on the large black rock behind them and then a group of creatures that were awakened beneath the city begin to plot the next move for their master back in Canterlot.

Pride(shadow form-will reveal real body later)-"Well it seems that we have some ponies in our fair city and it appears that there are 14 ponies and 1 baby dragon and one of them appears to be part of the Royal family. This might be interesting."

Lust-"Well then I will go above and kill them all real quick with my claws."

Gluttony-"Oh can I please eat what's left of them Lust?"

Envy-"I was not expecting any ponies to show up after our master wiped out the other humans back then. Oh well I will be happy to pummel them all to death."

Pride(shadow form)-"No. Our master gave us orders not to harm them but to keep an eye on them for now and if they do something that might affect the masters plan then we can kill them but for now let them explore the city for now. I'll keep an eye or two on them for the time being and try to secretly point them towards their goal which will also help our masters ultimate plan to gain what he really desires."

Gluttony-"Aww I was hoping that could eat at least one of them. I'm so very hungry."

Lust-"Don't worry Gluttony I'll find you something to eat real soon."

Envy-"Why the hell can't we kill them and what is it our master really desires if they need to be kept alive?"

Pride(Shadow form)-"Our master has not determined which of them will be his sacrifices for his master plan and as for what he really desires is to obtain the power of GOD and we'll make sure his plan is successful even if we have to slay a few of Celestia's ponies to help make it happen but for now the ones here in Amestris we leave alone. At least for now."

Ending notes of chapter 5.

Will the Ponies be able to find what they are looking for while in Amestris and not be harmed by the humonculi and what else will the Ponies find while in Amestris? Will it be something good for Equestria or something even darker and what will the unknown human be doing next while he's hiding in Canterlot?


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6-Journey thorugh Amestris part 1-The search for the truth and the darkness below.

Day 1.

As the Bruno and the others make their way towards the center of the city where the palace resides they decide to try and get into the palace but some weird power keeps them from getting in and after a couple of tries they decide give up and go with another plan. They decide to split the group into groups of three to check out the city faster but before they do Bruno decides to show the others a few surprises for them that they can use for exploring the city while they're split up.

Twilight-"Wow so this is the Grand Palace of Amestris and it looks like the towers surrounding it are taller than the palace itself. How do we get into it?"

Bruno-"I really don't know how. I don't see a door or gate anywhere."

Lyra-"Did you try looking at the map brother?"

Bruno-"What?"

Lyra-"Well this map of the entire city shows that we're on the south side of the palace and the entrance is on the north side and given it's size it will take us several hours to get there."

Rarity-"I'm not walking for hours just to get in. I'll sweat way too much and I don't like that."

Applejack-"Oh really! I've seen you sweat when we were in the steam room at the Ponyville Spa and sweating like that is no different then then if you were walking in the hot sun."

Rarity-"OK you got me on that one but if I plan to walk around this big city I would at least like to find something to keep me cool during the day. Oh maybe the humans left something around here for me to use."

Rainbow Dash-"What could you possibly find in a city this HUGE?"

Rarity-"I'm sure that the humans had shops around here where I can 'borrow' something."

Twilight-"I'm sure that we can find something later and you do have a good point Rarity."

Rarity-"Thanks Twilight. What do I have a good point about again?"

Twilight-"About walking to the other side of the palace to get in or did you forget that we have an Alchemist traveling with us? He can make us an entrance with his alchemy can't you Bruno?"

Bruno-"Oh that's right. How could I forget something that obvious?"

Cadence-"OH I finally get to see his alchemy for the first time. Can you make us a door Bruno?"

Bruno-"With pleasure. OK everyone stand back."

As Bruno claps his hooves together he then touches the palace wall to make a door but for some reason nothing happened to the wall and the others were stunned as to why.

Lyra-"Um, Brother where's the door?"

Bruno-"That's never happened before. Let me try again."

Bruno then claps his hooves and touches the wall and again nothing happens.

Cadence-"Bruno, is something wrong? You look a bit upset."

Bruno-"This doesn't make any sense. My alchemy should have worked. Hold on. I want to try something."

Bruno then claps his hooves and makes a small statue out of the ground and Twilight wonders why his alchemy worked on the ground and not the palace wall until Lyra decides to try something else to get in.

Twilight-"Well your alchemy still works but why didn't it work on the wall?"

Bruno-"I have no idea myself."

Lyra-"Well if Brother's alchemy couldn't make a door then I'll just break the wall to get us all inside. Everypony give me some running space and take a few steps back to avoid any debris that might fall down."

Rainbow Dash-"Oh that's right. Lyra is freakishly strong and fast and that's because the powers of Shodai are in her blood just like her mother."

As Lyra gains some distance she then runs towards the wall and then with a strong leap forward she land a powerful punch to the palace wall and several large pieces break off and as the others are about to celebrate they notice something happening to the walls. The wall begins to repair itself and the others are very shocked.

Bruno-"Alright Sis way to go!"

Rainbow Dash-"Look at the size of that break!"

Twilight-"At this rate we might get in faster then it would take to go around."

Applebloom-"Um you might want to rethink that."

Bruno-"Why is that?"

Applebloom-"Well the wall looks like it's healing itself."

Twilight-"That's not possible. A wall is made of stuff like rock or wood."

Sweetie Belle-"She's right. Look at it."

The broken wall begins to repair itself like magic and after a few seconds it looks like that the wall was never broken and the others were wondering how that happened.

Twilight-"How is that possible? I've never seen anything like that. What do you make of all this Bruno?"

Bruno-"Could it be that...? Lyra could you hit the wall one more time please?"

Lyra-"Sure but may I ask why?"

Bruno-"I have a hunch on something. Hit it again but not as hard as you did a minute ago."

Lyra-"OK. Here goes."

Lyra lands another punch to the wall and it breaks and after a few seconds it repairs itself and Bruno may have a theory to why the wall repairs itself.

Twilight-"Did you figure something out Bruno?"

Bruno-"Well I have a theory as to why the wall is fixing itself but in order to tell you why I have to tell you a bit about how alchemy works."

Rainbow Dash-"Oh great. Another lesson."

Bruno-"I'll keep it real short so that we can get on to our other tasks here in the city."

Twilight-"So what's your theory Bruno?"

Bruno-"Well do any of you know where the power of alchemy comes from?"

Applejack-"Some kind of power that's magic but not magic at the same time?"

Twilight-"Doesn't the power come from a circle or from your body every time you clap your hooves to transmute?"

Bruno-"You're not wrong Twilight. Both the circle and me clapping hooves is part of it. You see the circle and my clapping draws out the power from the earth itself."

Fluttershy-"From the earth? What does that mean?"

Twilight-"That's something I don't know. Can you explain it better."

Bruno-"Alchemy draws it power from Tectonic energy which is caused by the movement of the earth's crust. It's the same kind of energy that in nature creates earthquakes and causes volcanoes to erupt. It's that energy that allows alchemists to preform their transmutations for things like making buildings or weapons and other things and the circle or in my case, clapping my hooves is able to read and detect that power and harness it to transmute things like what you saw me do to the ground but as for the wall I think that what's causing to it fix itself is some kind of magic and its' energy inside is making it almost impossible for my alchemy to draw out the tectonic energy in these palace walls and as for breaking it down with brute force like Lyra did it looks like it fixes itself faster than it would take to keep trying to break through it and since I have no idea how thick these walls are we may have to try going to the main entrance on the other side but at another time."

Twilight-"I had no idea that Alchemy was powered by the energy of the earth. This is amazing and I so want to know more about it but I agree with Bruno and that we should try to get into the palace another time."

Pinkie Pie-"How come it's so important that we get inside there? Is there something in there that we need or are we just going to look around the palace for fun?"

Twilight-"Princess Celestia told me that there was a library in there with books that only Royalty and members of the royal guard were allowed to read. It had all different kinds of research journals on magic, Alchemy and other things of great importance but somehow she was unable to get into the palace even to this day. We figured that there would be something in that library that could help us out but for now we can check out the other 5 libraries in the city for now."

Rarity-"I know going to those libraries is part of our mission but I would like have a look around the city if that's OK?"

Rainbow Dash-"I agree with Rarity. I'd love to see the city."

Bruno-"Well if you all want to have a look around that would be OK since we need to find a place to sleep for the night."

AppleBloom-"What if we split up into groups so that we can search faster?"

AppleJack-"There's no way I'm letting you go on your own in a place this big."

Bruno-"Applebloom does has a good point and I have an idea on how we can do this."

Fluttershy-"What's your idea?"

Bruno-"Since there are 15 of us total we can split into 3 groups of 5 and each group will look around the city and look for a place for where we need to sleep for the night while one group will look around the library for the books we need to take back with us."

Twilight-"That's a great idea but which group will each of us be in?"

Bruno-"Well Group 1 will be looking in the library and they consist of myself, Twilight, Cadence, Spike and Zetsu. Group 2 will be Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and Applejack and Group 3 will consist of my Dad, Applebloom, Sweetie Bell, Scootaloo and Lyra. This way groups 2 and 3 will split up and find us a place to sleep for the night faster."

Applejack-"Well that sounds like a very thought out plan but I don't want my little sister going off on her own like that. I want her to stick with me."

Applebloom-"That's not fair! Besides Lyra's Dad will be with us the entire time so we'll be safe with him. Don't you trust him or me sis?"

Haru-"Applejack. I'll keep them safe as if they were my own."

Twilight-"Don't you think you're being a bit overprotective of your sister?"

Applejack-"Look I promised Big Mac and Granny Smith that I would keep her safe and don't take this personally Haru but you can understand how it feels to look after family right?"

Haru-"I understand how you feel but what can happen here? This country has been abandoned for over 1500 years and the only thing Lyra could sense that was weird was the 'ocean of souls' she sensed that were underground."

Applebloom-"Sis you know I love you but you need to be able to trust me if I'm on my own so please let me go with them. What's the worst that could happen?"

Applejack-"Oh alright but you better listen to Haru if you intend to go with him. OK?"

Applebloom-"That's fine."

Bruno-"If you two are finished I would like to show you some awesome tools that each group will be taking with them and they are really cool. I made them myself."

Bruno then opens the vortex in his eye and out pops three large scrolls and he explains what they are used for."

Twilight-"What are those things? They look like ordinary scrolls."

Bruno-"These scrolls are kind of my own design and they have the ability to transport anything you want on them into my pocket dimension. Think of it as a portable form of teleportation and it also has another use. If you want something to go to me directly instead of my dimension then I'll show you how it works."

Bruno unrolls two of the scrolls and shows how it's done.

Bruno-"Here you see a large circle in the center and 3 small ones below it. the circle with the eye on it is when you want to send something to my dimension and the one with the star will send anything to my scroll or another scroll directly. What do you think of them?"

Twilight-"That's amazing. When did you make these things?"

Bruno-"I'll tell you that shortly."

Scootaloo-"How do we use them?"

Bruno-"That reminds me everyone stick out your hoof please and your hand please Spike."

Bruno then uses his magic to place a symbol of star with an eye in the center on the bottom of their hoof and on Spike's hand and then he explains how they work.

Cadence-"What's the point of these things?"

Rarity-"Tell me that they at least wash off."

Bruno-"Those markings have traces of my magical energy in them so that when you each need to use the scroll it will activate the scrolls power. What you do is when you need to send it to my dimension you place the object on the large circle and with the mark on your hoof you touch the circle with the eye since the eye represents the portal to my dimension and if you want to send something or someone to me or another group you place an object or let's say someone on the circle then with the mark you touch the circle with the star on it and whatever you want to send will be teleported to the other scroll and for the record Rarity I'm the only one who can remove them. They don't wash off."

Rainbow Dash-"I'd like to see this how it works."

Bruno-"Sure thing. I'll teleport one of you from scroll to scroll. Can I have a volunteer?"

Scootaloo-"I'll try it out."

Bruno-"Great. Please step on the large circle Scootaloo."

Scootaloo-"OK then what?"

Bruno-"Rarity would you please these take your hoof with the mark and touch the small circle with the number 1 on it. When you touch it Scootaloo will be teleported to the scroll that has the number 1 on it which is the scroll that's part of my group."

Rarity-"OK. Here goes."

As Rarity places he hoof on the scroll, Scootaloo is body is covered in a red aura and she's instantly teleported to Bruno's scroll and the others were impressed with Bruno's awesome and handy invention.

Twilight-"That was amazing Bruno and I have to ask again when did you make these things?"

Bruno-"I made these when I was training with my teacher about 3 years ago and it was her idea to begin and she was never able to complete it by herself but ever since I passed through the portal of truth I was able to complete the design by myself and she was very impressed with me that she took me and Lyra out to dinner and when we were done training with her she decided to give me the scroll to take with me as sort of a graduation gift for me to do with as I please. The only thing I did different was the part where the scrolls go into my pocket dimension and making that part wasn't easy."

Cadence-"This is the teacher whom you said had the mark of the 'Anavel Clan' Right?"

Twilight-"I was wondering if you had a picture of her that we could see like you when you showed us the picture of your mother and brother earlier?"

Bruno-"I'll show you all later tonight when we find a place to sleep. Now before we all split up and search the city I have one more thing I want to show you that would be helpful for everyone. Zetsu would you please."

White Zetsu-"No problem Bruno."

Zetsu's white side begins to spit out of his mouth 3 white blobs and they begin to go underground.

Rarity-"Eww that's gross. If you're going to spit at least do it away from a lady."

Pinkie Pie-"Wait. Are they moving?"

Fluttershy-"They're going underground. But why?"

Bruno-"Just watch and see."

Then they begin to sprout into giant pods and after a minute duplicates of Zetsu begin to come out of them and the others are shocked.

Rarity-"What are those things coming out of them?"

Cadence-"They kind of look like Zetsu but both sides are white."

Twilight-"Bruno, What are these things and what purpose do they serve for us?"

Bruno-"I'm glad you asked. What you all see here is Zetsu's clones made of his body and they are used for communicating with each other and they also act as bodyguards for each team while were all looking around the city."

Twilight-"I get that Zetsu could make duplicates of himself since he basically made of plant life but how would his clones be able to us talk to each other while we're in different places in the city?"

Bruno-"Well if you notice that Zetsu's white half is mostly made of plant life and it as you saw before and just now has a lot of abilities but its' black half has some kind of psychic power that can telepathically communicate with any of the clones he makes and with my magic I can alter these clones to also make it so we can communicate with each other. Watch and see."

Bruno then marks the clones each with a number 1 through 3 and 2 circles with numbers on each of them and Bruno explains how the clones would work.

Twilight-"What are those markings on Zetsu for anyway? They look like the same markings I saw on the scroll a minute ago."

Bruno-"I'm glad you asked and the reason is these are similar to the scrolls. You know what I'll just give you a demonstration. Pinkie Pie would you and the Zetsu clone with the number 2 go behind that tree way over there and when you hear my voice coming from that clone take the mark on your hoof and place it on the circle with the number 1 on it and then begin to talk to the clone with you hoof still on him. OK?"

Pinkie Pie-"Sure thing. Come on number 2 let's go."

Zetsu(clone #2)-"You can just call me Zetsu. We are part of the same pony you know."

As Pinkie Pie and the Zetsu clone go to the tree Pinkie Pie is able to hear Bruno's voice from the clone and is so shocked she forgot what she had to do next.

Pinkie Pie-"OK what do I have to do now?"

Bruno-"Watch this everyone."

Bruno then places his hoof on his clone and begins to speak to Pinkie Pie through him.

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"Well all you have to do is place your hoof on the number 1 and then you just talk to the clone as if you were talking to me. Do you want me to say it over again?"

Pinkie Pie(shouting)-"Wow that's amazing! Did you all hear that?"

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"Pinkie, I need you to place your hoof on the clone with the number 1 on it and speak to the clone please."

Pinkie Pie(speaking to herself)-"OK place my hoof on the number 1 and then just talk. Well here goes nothing."

Pinkie Pie(speaking through clone)-"Can anypony hear me? Well anyone?"

As the others hear Pinkie's voice coming from the clone they are shocked beyond belief by Bruno's amazing use of his magic.

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"That's great Pinkie Pie. You and the clone can come back to the group now."

Twilight-"That's Amazing Bruno! Did you come up with that during your travels too?"

Bruno-"You bet I did. Now if any of you need to talk to someone from another group that's in another location than all you need to do is place your marked hoof in the number of the clone you want to talk to and that's it. My clone has the number 1 on it since my group is group 1 and well you can figure the rest out from there."

Applejack-"That's great. Now I can check on Applebloom when I need to so I know she's OK."

Cadence-"Bruno your talents are pretty much one of a kind. I must tell my Aunt when we get back to Equestria."

Spike-"These are so Cool!"

Haru-"Son I had no Idea that you had these kinds of abilities. I'm so proud of you."

Bruno-"Thanks Dad. Now everyone before we split up here's the plan again. Group 1 will consist of myself, Twilight, Cadence, Spike and Zetsu and we'll be going to each of the libraries in the city but to make it easier we'll go to one library a day. Group 2 will consist of my Dad, Lyra, Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo and Group 3 will consist of Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. Groups 2 & 3 will split up into different directions to find a suitable place for all of us to sleep for the night and in order to signal the other groups to which ever location the place we'll be staying for the night any unicorns will shoot a beam of magic towards the sky so that we can locate you. OK?"

They all say-"You got it!"

Spike-"Aww why do I have to go to the libraries? I want to see the city too."

Twilight-"Well I was hoping for your help in finding the books we need but I'll make you a deal. If you agree to help me with the library we're going to today then I'll let you switch with anyone else from another group for the next day but then the day after that you come with me to the 3rd library to help me. It's like this, one day with me and one day with another and we repeat it till we're either ready to leave or when we're done with all 5 libraries. Does that work for you Spike?"

Spike-"That's just fine with me."

Bruno-"OK now since we're closest to the library south-west of here I thought that the rest of you could look in that direction for a place that we all can rest for the night. Use the clone to let everyone know what the place is like and use a spell to signal the rest to show where you are and we'll come there. Let's spit up everyone and be careful!"

At the groups split up into the south western area to look around the city Twilight and her group go to one of the 5 major libraries in hopes of finding the information they need for making the Philosophers Stone.

Group 1 at the 1st library.

After about 2 hours of walking Bruno, Twilight, Cadence, Spike and Zetsu arrive at one of the libraries and they found out it's bigger than they thought and Spike was not too happy at all and Bruno ponders something odd that he notices about the city.

Bruno-"So this is one of the 5 libraries of Heliopolis. I honestly did not picture it to be this big but at least a little smaller."

Spike-"So I have to go through all the books in this HUGE library? This bites!"

Twilight-"Hey, you watch your mouth Spike and despite it's size libraries have do their books organized into different sections such as fiction, non-fiction and many others. all we need to do is figure out which section holds the books that have to do with research into either magic or alchemy and those are what we need to look for."

Cadence-"Well we can rule out the fiction and non-fiction sections of the library. What area should be looking in?"

Bruno-"My guess is somewhere that's labeled science or something like that but if we only had some kind of map of the library to help us out."

Twilight-"Here's something. It looks like there are 5 sections that might be what we are all looking for. We'll start in the research section in the back and then the section marked science."

White Zetsu-"So we'll just be looking for books for the time being?"  
Black Zetsu-"It sounds better than walking out in the hot sun all day."

Cadence-"I can't believe something this huge is still standing after 1500 years."

Bruno-"Come to think of it. How is it that the whole city doesn't look worn away from the effects of time? The buildings don't have any signs of decay like the 'Ariel ruins' do. How is that possible?"

Twilight-"Well you see every 100 years since the the humans vanished in addition to searching for any survivors Princess Celestia places a spell on the entire country so that the buildings, houses, and even the books in the libraries so that they don't break apart or become worn away from the effects of time. She basically wants to preserve everything in the event the humans ever return or if they never come back and she finally decides to let others in Equestria live there for good but to this day she never gives up hope in searching."

Bruno-"Did Princess Celestia and Princess Luna have some kind of friendship with any of the humans in particular or did they just like them all equally?"

Twilight-"Well although they did like them all they were always close with each generation of both the royal family and royal guards, in fact Princess Celestia told me that one time the royal guards had some kind of huge party at night and she ended up getting a bit drunk and had to stay at the palace overnight and that was the only time she told me that she ever got drunk since I became her student."

Bruno-"Celestia got drunk! That's something I did not see coming."

Cadence-"I remember her telling me that story too a few years ago and I never pictured her having getting drunk before in my life."

Spike-"Um as much as I want to hear about this funny and awkward side of the princess, Zetsu and I found a room in the back marked 'research journals and scrolls'. Do you want to check it out or should I let you finish telling your funny story?"

Twilight-"Wow Spike! You found it! Thanks."

Spike-"Well I figured that the faster we do this the faster we can get out of here and we can rest for the night. Oh by the way the door is locked real tight."

As Bruno and the others arrive at the back of the library they find the room labeled Research and since the door was locked Bruno decides to kick down the door to get in.

Bruno-"That's what we were looking for so let's get started."

Twilight-"But the door is locked. How will we get in there?"

Bruno-"Well I could kick the door down or I could just use Alchemy to destroy the lock?"

Spike-"Why don't you kick it down and give your alchemy a break for now?"

Bruno-"OK. Break it down it is, so stand back everyone."

Bruno then kicks the door open and he and the others go in he uses his Alchemy to fix the door and then unlocks it from the inside and after that everyone gets to work and Bruno brings the book with the language of the 'Ariel Ruins' out to help narrow down their search.

Twilight-"So what are we looking for again?"

Bruno-"This room holds a bunch of research journals and scrolls about magic, Alchemy and other stuff of great importance but what we need to find is something with this language written in it so that we might be able to translate it so let's get going."

Spike-"So what happens if we don't find it?"

Twilight-"Well then we look in the other libraries till we find something."

Bruno-"And if we can't find anything in all of the 5 libraries we'll try to go to the library in the palace since they have better stuff there anyway."

Spike-"Well then let's not leave any book unopened."

The others begin looking through the room for the next few hours in hopes of finding the information they need and when they're done they will meet up with the others in the city to rest for the night.

Group 2 in the city.

Applejack and her group have been walking around the city for 3 hours since they split up from the others. Since they had plenty of time to look for a place to sleep they decide to enjoy the scenery for a few hours and decide to check out the different shops in town and Rarity and Pinkie Pie each found a shop worth checking out.

Applejack-"So shall we start looking for a place that we can rest for the night before we decide to look around?"

Rarity-"Well I was hoping that I could check out any of the clothing stores that are nearby so I can find something worth using for my next fashion design or maybe they had some kind of fabric that's really rare here that I can use for myself."

Fluttershy-"Are you saying you want to just take it?"

Applejack-"That's stealing Rarity and we don't steal no matter what!"

Rarity-"First of all Before you go accusing me of that I don't plan to steal anything and second, With a little help from Twilight she taught me a spell that can duplicate any object I want any number of times I want so that if I find something I really want I just make a copy of it and take the copy and leave the original behind. It's not stealing if you make a copy of it for yourself and I also used this spell when I needed to copy some of my gems with really good shapes that I use for my designs."

Fluttershy-"When did you first use this spell?"

Rarity-"The first time I used this spell I made a duplicate of the fire ruby that Spike gave to me on his birthday and I plan to give him a bunch of them for his next birthday."

Applejack-"Well I have no objection to looking around the city but I'd feel better if we could find a place for everyone to rest for the night first."

Rainbow Dash-"How about if I fly around til I can find someplace big enough for all of us and then Fluttershy will stay directly above the group on top of one of these buildings so that I'll be able to find you all when I come back after finding a place for everyone to rest."

Applejack-"I guess that sounds like a good idea. Go for it Rainbow!"

Rarity-"Oh and make sure that the place you find is very luxurious and spacious please."

Rainbow Dash-"Alright. I'll be back soon. Fluttershy remember to stay above the group so I can spot you when I'm on my way back and Rarity, if I'm not back by sundown to the point where I can't see Fluttershy be sure to use your magic to shoot a beam of light into the sky so I can spot where you all are and Applejack if I come back while it's still light outside. please use the Zetsu clone to alert the others of where we will be staying. OK?"

Applejack-"That sounds like a great idea."

Fluttershy-"I agree too."

Rarity-"Good luck Rainbow. Um where did Pinkie pie run off to?"

Applejack-"Oh for crying out loud. Pinkie Pie where are you!"

Pinkie Pie-"I'm over here. Come check out this place I found."

Rarity-"I wonder what she found now?"

The others walk over to where Pinkie Pie is and she shows them a street full of shops that everyone of them seem to enjoy.

Rarity-"Oh what do we have here?"

Applejack-"It looks like this street has a whole bunch of shops."

Pinkie Pie-"I know. I heard Rarity talking about finding some clothing shops and while you and Rainbow Dash were talking about looking for a place for us to sleep I decided to sneak off and have look around and I found all of the shops just around that corner and about 1/3rd of them are clothing shops for you to check out Rarity."

Rarity-"Oh thank you so much Pinkie! If any of you need me I'll be in one of these shops for the next couple of hours so you all have fun. Oh and I'll be borrowing the scroll for a while to take what I want with me."

As Rarity goes to check out the clothing shops, Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy decide to have a look around at the other shops nearby.

Applejack-"So what else did you find here Pinkie?"

Pinkie Pie-"Oh all sorts of things but are any of you looking for anything for yourselves to take back with you?"

Fluttershy-"I can't think of anything right now. How about you Applejack?"

Applejack-"I really can't think of anything either. Is there something you want to find here Pinkie Pie?"

Pinkie Pie-"Well if we walk around for a bit I think there might be something I would like to take back to Ponyville with me."

Fluttershy-"Well you all can look around if you want to. I'll be above you all on top of these buildings keeping an eye out for Rainbow Dash."

Applejack-"That's sounds fine. Pinkie Pie, Zetsu and I will be fine on our own so you can enjoy the view from up there."

As Applejack and Pinkie Pie walk down the street 4 hours later Rainbow Dash comes back and let's the others know about a place that everyone can sleep for tonight.

Fluttershy-"Hey! I can see Rainbow Dash and she's heading our way now. Rainbow, were all over here!"

Rainbow Dash-"Hey everyone! I'm back and I found the perfect place that we can all stay in for tonight."

Applejack-"That's nice. What does this place look like?"

Rainbow-"Well It's big and it looks like some kind of fancy hotel with plenty of rooms for everyone to sleep in and get this, it also has its' own built-in hot springs so that we can all enjoy a hot relaxing bath tonight."

Applejack-"Oh a hot bath would sound just fine."

Fluttershy-"I'll bet Rarity would just love that. Um where is she by the way?"

Applejack-"Oh I think she's around here somewhere. RARITY WHERE ARE YOU!"

Zetsu (clone)-"Um if you want I can tell where she is by sensing her magical energy?"

Fluttershy-"You can do that?"

Zetsu (clone)-"Yes. If she's been using her magic to copy the items she wanted then finding her should be fairly easy."

Applejack-"Well that's convenient. Can you find her now please?"

Zetsu (clone)-"Sure just give me a few seconds to focus."

The Zetsu clone then closes his eyes to concentrate and after about 30 seconds he managed to pinpoint Rarity's location and she was halfway back down the street and after knowing where she is Fluttershy decides to go and get her.

Zetsu (clone)-"I found her. She's about 1 kilometer back that way in a shop to the right."

Pinkie Pie-"How far is 1 kilometer?"

Zetsu (clone)-"It's about half a mile."

Fluttershy-"That's not too far. I'll go and get her and let her know that we found a place to sleep for the night. By the way should we just go there after I get her and get settled in?"

Applejack-"I think that would be good since we can look around at other places close to the hotel. That reminds me. Zetsu,I need to use you to contact the others about where we'll be staying the night."

Zetsu(clone)-"Go ahead Applejack."

Rainbow Dash-"Maybe we should wait til we actually get there first before we contact the others."

Applejack-"Good idea."

Meanwhile Fluttershy arrives at one of the clothing stores to check on Rarity and to let her know about the Hotel everyone will be staying at but getting her to leave the store may be a bit hard for Fluttershy.

Fluttershy-"Rarity are you in here? Oh there you are I have some good news."

Rarity-"Not now Fluttershy. I'm busy going through this stores stuff. I found materials so rare I just had to make thousands of copies of them so I can REALLY stock up on them for my shop and I'm starting to get tired from using this spell so much."

Fluttershy-"Just exactly how much stuff did you copy in all of those stores Rarity?"

Rarity-"As I said I made THOUSANDS of copies of everything that was worth bringing back to my shop and I'm not leaving til I'm satisfied with what I have gotten out of this city or at least the row of stores on this street."

Fluttershy-"Well Rainbow Dash found us a place to sleep for the night and it's a place you might like very much."

Rarity-"Oh really what might be so great to pull me away from my tasks here in this store?"

Fluttershy-"Rainbow Dash said that it's a giant hotel with a hot springs built into it."

Rarity-"Did you say a Hotel with a hot springs?"

Fluttershy-"Yeah. The hot springs is big enough for all of us to take a nice relaxing bath in after everypony is done for today and there are large rooms with big beds there and each room has either one or two beds in it in case you want a room all to yourself."

Rarity-"All to myself! Well I'm sure that I can look at some other shops tomorrow. let's go to that wonderful hotel now."

Fluttershy(thinking)-"I thought that might work."

As Fluttershy and Rarity leave the store they eventually catch up with Applejack and the others and then they head off to the hotel.

Applejack-"Well it's about time. Just what were you doing all this time Rarity?"

Rarity-"Well if you must know I've been duplicating and stocking up on some of the finest quality materials these humans have ever made for my shop and let me tell you after using my magic to make thousands of copies of each of them I'm dead tired. Using that spell that many times has wiped me out."

Applejack-"Well you may have to gather as much energy as you can to walk the rest of the way to the hotel we'll be staying at and then you can rest all you want when we get there."

Rarity-"That sounds fair. How far is it?"

Rainbow Dash-"It's about 2 miles north-east of here. It's between the library Twilight and the others are at and the next library on the list.

Rarity-"2 miles! I had no idea it was that far."

Applejack-"Just suck it up and start walking. In fact to make things better when we get there you can have first dibs on the room you want before the rest of us pick what we want. Is that alright with you Rarity?"

Rarity-"That's just fine."

As Applejack and the others walk for an hour they finally arrive at the hotel and after walking 2 miles in the heat Rarity is finally able to relax and the others decide to get settled in for the rest of the day.

Rainbow Dash-"Well here we are."

Rarity-"This is the hotel? It's bigger than I imagined but it will do for now. I think I'll check myself in for now. Now to find my perfect room."

Applejack-"Um how will you know what room you want if you can't get in?"

Rarity-"What do you mean?"

Pinkie Pie-"You need a key to get into those rooms silly. All the rooms are locked so that people don't sneak in and try to get a room for free."

Rarity-"Oh shoot! Now how will I find the perfect room for me?"

Fluttershy-"Well from the outside it looks like all the rooms have windows. This way if you look inside them then you can find the room you want."

Rarity-"Well that does make things better but this place is large and it has 8 floors and since I can't fly how will be able to look at the ones above?"

Applejack-"Will you stop it Rarity! Look I said that you can have first dibs on a room just for you but if all you are going to do is complain about it then you can just sleep outside. Besides I think it would be better if we stayed on the first floor so this way our rooms can be close together."

Rarity-"OK OK you don't have to yell and maybe a room on this floor would be better for everyone while we're here but I'm still picking the room I want so I'll be outside looking through the windows for the next few minutes."

Fluttershy-"Did you really have to yell at her like that?"

Applejack-"I had to. I can't stand it when she complains like that."

Rainbow Dash-"Well as soon as she finds her room then she will be happy and she will relax and things will quiet down for the better."

Applejack-"That true. So let's check out what kind of rooms we'll be sleeping in tonight and afterwards I'll contact the others to our location."

Fluttershy-"I'm going to look at the Hot Springs and see how big it is."

Pinkie Pie-"Sounds good. I'll grab the keys."

Applejack and the others look at the rooms and the Hot springs and then get settled for the rest of the day.

Group 3 in the city. 1:pm

Meanwhile Haru, the Zetsu clone and the cutie mark crusaders are looking around a different part of the city and their area has a lot of nice things for them to see such as parks with playgrounds and a small lake for them to have a quick swim in but they soon discover something in the city that the humans were building before they vanished that they find to be very interesting and worth looking into.

Haru-"I must say that these humans have done a lot for themselves over the many years that they have been around. These tall buildings and that giant palace is the best of them all."

Lyra-"I agree Dad but we're only in the capital of this country and if we had a lot more time than a week we could see a lot more than just this city."

Haru-"True. Um where is Scootaloo?"

Sweetie Belle-"Maybe she had to use the bathroom?"

Applebloom-"Actually flew off to look around for a bit."

Haru-"Oh I told you all to stick together and now I have no idea where she is."

Lyra-"Dad did you forget that Bruno and I can detect the presence of others by sensing their life-force? I can find where Scootaloo is in seconds."

Haru-"Oh that's right."

Sweetie Belle-"I had no idea that you had that ability."

Lyra-"Bruno and I have had this power since we were born but I don't know if my older brother Vince had it too. Give me a few seconds and I'll try to find Scootaloo."

Applebloom-"There's no need I can see her coming back right now."

As Scootaloo arrives back to the group she tells the others that she found something worth checking out.

Scootaloo-"Hey everypony! You won't believe what I just found!"

Haru-"Scootaloo, I told you to stay with the group and not wander off like that."

Scootaloo-"I'm sorry. I just wanted to get a birds-eye view of the city and I found a nice place where we can take a break for a while."

Applebloom-"What is it?"

Scootaloo-"Well it's a section of the city that looks like it's part forest, part field and has a small lake where we can swim in it to cool off and I saw what looks like a playground for us to play on."

Sweetie Belle-"Oh that sounds nice."

Haru-"That's called a park. They have those in Manehatten. It's a place where others can relax and let their foals or in this case the human kids play for fun when they want to stay in the city but be near trees and grass for them to lay on."

Scootaloo-"A park duh. I really haven't been outside of Ponyville much."

Lyra-"Can we check it out please Dad?"

Haru-"Sure why not. Scootaloo can you show us where it is please?"

Scootaloo-"Sure I'll fly above and you can just follow me."

After walking for almost an hour following Scootaloo they finally arrive at the park and they decide to kick back and relax for a couple of hours and the Cutie Mark Crusaders start by going for a swim in the Parks lake to cool off.

Haru-"Here we are girls. Why don't we all take a break for a couple of hours before we get back to looking around the city?"

Lyra-"Sound great Dad. Hey look there's a lake. Let's all go for a swim."

Scootaloo-"Sounds good!"

Sweetie Belle-"I'm in."

Applebloom-"Me too!"

Haru-"You girls have fun. I'm going to take a nap under that tree over there. Could you keep an eye on the girls for a bit Zetsu?"

Zetsu(clone)-"Sure. No problem."

After about an hour and a half of swimming and splashing the Cutie Mark Crusaders decide to get out and dry off for a bit and after about 30 minutes they decide to continue looking around the rest of the city but Applebloom makes a strange discovery nearby.

Lyra-"Wow that was a great swim. I feel much better."

Sweetie Belle-"My mane may look messy from being wet but I don't care."

Scootaloo-"Do we have any towels for us to dry off with?"

Applebloom-"I don't think we do. Oh I see a shop way over there. Maybe the humans left something we can use to dry ourselves off with. I'll be back with something in a bit."

Lyra-"Don't go too far."

Meanwhile the Homunculi continue to watch over the ponies while being watched by Pride and feeling bored Pride decides to have some fun with the ponies in the park.

Envy-"I'm getting bored Pride. Can't we go up and watch them ourselves?"

Pride(shadow form)-"No Envy. As long as we stay underground we can't be seen and hiding out of sight above ground won't work. It turns out that the 2 ponies with the gold star marks can detect our presence with some kind of psychic power. However I can hide my presence so I'll go above ground and have a little fun with them."

Lust-"Aren't you getting a bit selfish Pride?"

Envy-"So what if they can sense us? They'll think we're just survivors of the massacre that our master did over 1500 years and we'll say we were kept alive for his cruel experiments and we escaped to seek help and when they let their guard down BAM we'll pummel them to a bloody pulp!"

Pride(shadow form)-"As I said earlier our master has not determined which of them will be his sacrifices for his current plan so killing them is off limits but you other idea to deceive them into who we are might come in handy but for now I'm going above and until further notice you all stay here for now."

Envy-"Fine! Well continue to watch the rest of them from here but don't hog all the fun."

Pride then leaves the hideout to have his own fun with the Cutie mark Crusaders above ground.

Meanwhile as Applebloom arrives at the shop she goes in and finds some towels to bring back and as she leaves she hears a voice and then foot steps behind the shop and as she goes to check it out she sees what looks like a small human child with short black hair walking down some steps that go underground and as she arrives at the steps to look for the human she then notices that he just vanished and then she rushes back to the others to tell them what she saw.

Applebloom-"Well I'm glad that this shop had some towels that we can use. I'll just carry them back to the others."

Pride(Human Form, voice only)-"Applebloom. Come and play with me."

Applebloom-"What? Who's there? Show yourself! Wait I hear foot steps."

Applebloom walks to where she hears the footsteps.

Applebloom-"I heard the footsteps over here but I don't see any...Wait is that a human I see over there? Hey come back here! Where are you going?"

After she went over to talk to him he just vanished and after Applebloom goes down the stairs she sees something that she has to show the others quickly.

Applebloom-"What is this place? Wait are those train tracks and why are they underground? I have to show the others this. Oh can't forget the towels."

Applebloom finally arrives back with the towels and begins to tell the others what she saw but they have a hard time believing her until Lyra steps in to try and back her up.

Applebloom-"Hey everyone you won't believe what I just saw a minute ago!"

Sweetie Belle-"It's about time you came back with the towels."

Scootaloo-"Where have you been and why are you out of breath?"

Lyra-"Are you OK Applebloom? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Applebloom-"I don't know if it was a ghost but you won't believe what I saw by the shop."

Haru-"Calm down and explain it slowly Applebloom."

Applebloom-"Well as I was leaving the shop I heard a voice that said 'Applebloom come and play with me'. At first I thought it was one of you playing a prank on me but when I heard foot steps just behind the shop I went to check it out and I saw a human child going down some steps that went underground but when I went to the steps the human just vanished."

Scootaloo-"You saw a human? That can't be."

Sweetie Belle-"I thought all the humans died over 1500 years ago."

Haru-"Maybe you actually did see a ghost of one of the humans. That would explain why it would just vanish into thin air like you said. Ghosts can do that."

Applebloom-"How do you know that a ghost can do that? Did you ever see one before?"

Haru-"It's just a common theory on Ghost but you do have a good point Applebloom."

Lyra-"If you want I can look into your memories to see for myself what you did see earlier?"

Applebloom-"Go for it Lyra. That way if I'm right about what I saw I can rub it in all of your faces."

Lyra then uses her magic to look into Applebloom's memories and after a few seconds of searching she is shocked to see that Applebloom did see a human earlier and she also sees what Applebloom discovered down the stairs too and after telling the others they are now interested in looking around where Applebloom was.

Haru-"Well Lyra? Is she telling the truth?"

Lyra-"She's not kidding Dad. She really did see a human child earlier and she followed him down some stairs that went underground and it looks like there were train tracks underneath the city too. I think we should tell Big Brother and the others about this."

Haru-"Let's hold off on that for now. We should at least see what Applebloom saw below ground first and if it's that important then we'll tell the others later. Applebloom take us to where you spotted the human earlier."

Applebloom-"Sure. Just follow me."

Applebloom then show the others the place where she saw the human and after that she takes them down the stairs and show them what she discovered earlier.

Applebloom-"This is the place where I saw the human. He went down those stairs but when I followed him down he was just gone but what I saw down there might impress you all."

Sweetie Belle-"What did you find down there anyway?"

Lyra-"After what I saw in Applebloom's memories you will find what's down there worth seeing very much."

Applebloom and the others proceed down the steps when they reach the bottom they are shocked to see what Applebloom had found.

Applebloom-"So what do you all think of what I found earlier?"

Haru-"This is amazing. I had no idea that the humans had built these underground tunnels before."

Applebloom-"This is nothing. Go a little deeper and you'll all see what it was that really shocked me."

As the others go further beneath the city they are shocked to see what Applebloom really saw earlier.

Sweetie Belle-"Why are there train tracks underground?"

Haru-"Is this what you really saw Applebloom?"

Applebloom-"This is it. I think that the human I saw earlier was trying to show me."

Scootaloo-"But the question is why was the human trying to show us this?"

Lyra-"I have a theory on why there are train tracks under the city but I need to ask Twilight to find out. Can I use you for a minute Zetsu?"

Zetsu(clone)-"Sure Lyra. Go ahead."

Lyra then begins to contact Twilight at the library via the Zetsu clone and begins to make contact.

Lyra-"Twilight, Can you hear me?"

Meanwhile at the Library 2 minutes before Lyra contacts Twilight.

Spike-"This job is a lot harder than it sounds and I really need a break."

Twilight-"You've done a great job helping out Spike so why don't you rest for a while now and we can do the rest of the searching for now."

Spike-"Thanks Twilight."

Cadence-"So this is all that we can find in this Library for now?"

Bruno-"Yeah I'm afraid so and I've been thinking that if the other libraries end up having the same thing that's in this library then we may have to try to get into the palace and view its' library after all if we need any hope of making the Philosophers Stone we need to defeat that demon."

Twilight-"I agree, but the problem is that we need more than 7 days to do that or we need to get to each of those libraries faster. Let's face it, Walking or even flying isn't enough."

Lyra(speaking through clone)-"Twilight, Can you hear me?"

Twilight-"What was that?"

Bruno-"It sounded like my sister."

Cadence-"It's coming from the clone."

Lyra(speaking through clone)-"Twilight. Bruno. Is anypony there?"

Bruno(speaking into clone)-"I'm here Sis. What's going on? Is everything OK?"

Lyra(speaking through clone)-"Brother. Can I please talk to either Twilight and Cadence please? It's really important."

Bruno(speaking into clone)-"Yeah hold on a sec. Twilight, Cadence. Please put your hoof on Zetsu's back to talk to my sister. She says it's important."

Cadence and Twilight each place their hoof on the clone and begin to talk to her.

Twilight(speaking into clone)-"Lyra, what do you need to tell me and Cadence that's so urgent?"

Cadence(speaking into clone)-"Are you all OK?"

Lyra(speaking through clone)-"We're all fine but you won't believe what we just found."

Twilight(speaking into clone)-"What is it you found?"

Lyra(speaking through clone)-"We found some tunnels underneath the city and there are also train tracks in these tunnels too!"

Bruno-"Did she say train tracks underground? What do you make of that Twilight?"

Twilight-"I have no idea."

Cadence-"Wait I remember Aunt Celestia telling me that the humans had built a series of tunnels underneath Heliopolis so that they could use trains to transport others from on area of the city to another without taking up space on the surface. There's a maze of them throughout the entire city and some of those tunnels also store the trains that are used for transporting the humans outside of the city to other parts of the entire country."

Twilight-"That's amazing! I had no idea that the humans were so far ahead of us in various forms of construction."

Bruno-"Wait a second. I have an idea but I need to talk to my sister for a bit."

Twilight-"Go ahead Bruno."

Bruno(Speaking into clone)-"Lyra can you see any of the trains in there?"

Lyra(speaking through clone)-"Hold on a second and I'll check."

After looking around the tunnel for a minute Lyra finally spots a train with an empty car attached to the back of it and after seeing it she then goes back to tell her brother and the others through the clone.

Lyra(speaking through clone)-"Brother, I found one train further into the tunnel and it has an empty car hooked on to it. Why do you ask?"

Bruno(speaking into clone)-"Let's just say that those tunnels and that train will help us out with our mission even faster. Lyra I need you to take the scroll to the surface right now."

Lyra(speaking through clone)-"Why?"

Bruno(speaking into clone)-"I'm going to send Twilight and Cadence to your location and after I collect what I need from the Library here I'll fly to your location afterwards. OK?"

Lyra(speaking through clone)-"That's fine brother but what are you planning?"

Bruno(Speaking into clone)-"I'll tell you when I get there but for now I want you to take the scroll to the surface and leave it open for when I teleport Cadence and Twilight and be prepared to do it again for when I need to teleport something again. OK sis?"

Lyra(speaking through clone)-"OK brother. Lyra, out."

Twilight-"What is it you have planned for sending me and Cadence there."

Bruno-"My plan is to send you two there for now to check out the the condition of the train and see if your magic can get it running again and if your magic doesn't work then I'll come and use my Alchemy to fix it myself. As for why I'm staying here I plan to find a map of the tunnels and a map of the underground railroad system. With those items and that train we can speed up our mission even faster by using the train and those tunnels to get to the remaining libraries faster. Do you see where I'm going with this?"

Cadence-"That does make sense."

Twilight-"It would speed things up faster for everyone but what about Spike? He's too tired to do anything else for now. I think he's passed out from working all day."

Bruno-"For now Spike can rest here with me and after I find what I need I'll use the clone to contact Applejack's group and see if they found a place for the rest of us to sleep in and then I'll wake him up and use the scroll to teleport Spike to them and he can rest with them just before I leave to meet up with you. Is that OK?"

Twilight-"Sounds good but what about Zetsu and his clone? Are they coming with us too?"

Bruno-"I'll teleport them to your location just before I leave but for now I need their help in finding the maps I need. Are you OK with helping me out for a little longer Zetsu?"

Black Zetsu-"Sure Bruno."  
White Zetsu-"Are you sure that the maps of the tunnels will be here?"

Bruno-"If not then I have a hunch that they will be some where in the tunnels where those trains are."

Twilight-"Well if your done Cadence and I are ready to go to the others now."

Bruno-"Great but I can only teleport one at a time on that scroll. So who wants to go first?"

Twilight-"I'll go first. Do I have to place my hoof on the mark to go to them?"

Bruno-"You can but it's easier for someone else to do it. Why don't you do it Cadence? All you do is place your hoof on the number you want to teleport someone or something to. Since Lyra's group is group 3 you just touch the number 3 on the scroll and then Twilight will be teleported to them in an instant."

Cadence-"Sure thing. I'm eager to try it out."

Cadence then places her hoof on the scroll and Twilight is then transported to Lyra's group."

Meanwhile back at the park Lyra comes up to the surface to open the scroll and about 15 seconds after she opens it Twilight then appears in front of her and they catch up."

Lyra-"Twilight!? It's good to see you."

Twilight-"Wow that was fast! Oh hey Lyra. Cadence is on her way and she should be her soon and, Oh the scroll is glowing. She should be here right about-Now!"

Cadence then appears about a minute later and is feeling funny after being teleported.

Twilight-"Cadence are you OK."

Cadence-"I'm OK. I just feel feel a bit weird after that trip from scroll to scroll."

Lyra-"Are Zetsu and the clone coming too and what about Spike?"

Twilight-"Spike was working with us for so long that he ended up passing out so he's back at the library with Bruno resting for now and Zetsu and his clone are staying behind to help your brother look for some maps of the tunnels and will send Zetsu and the clone to us before he leaves and Spike will be sent to Applejack's group too. So you may have to keep that scroll ready for when they come too."

Lyra-"What does he need maps of the tunnels for anyway?"

Cadence-"Well looking for the maps and sending us here are part of the same plan. You see he sent us here to see if we can use our magic to try and fix the train,assuming it needs fixing and He thinks that if we can travel by train in these tunnels then we can get to those libraries faster and speed up our mission faster and having a map of those tunnels will help us to figure out the most direct path to take to each location."

Lyra-"Oh that would make things better for everyone."

Twilight-"Would you mind showing us what it looks like down there please?"

Lyra-"Sure just follow me."

Lyra then takes Twilight and Cadence down below and both of them are shocked to see what the humans have made in their many years.

Cadence-"This is so amazing."

Twilight-"I had no idea that the humans had built something like this."

Lyra-"I know. I was just as surprised as you when I first saw it but Applebloom was surprised even more than us."

Cadence-"Can you take us to the train please so we can see if we can get it running?"

Lyra-"Sure, just follow me."

As Lyra takes Twilight and Cadence to where the train is an hour and a half later Bruno is just about finished looking for the maps he needs for traveling through the tunnels by train and then he gets Spike ready to be sent to Applejack's group so he can rest for the day so he can meet up with his sister and the others underground.

Bruno-"Well that's the last of the maps I could find for now. Are you two ready to be teleported to Twilight's location?"

Zetsu and clone-"Yes."

Black Zetsu-"Don't forget about Spike."  
White Zetsu-"Make sure you contact Applejack's group before you send him there."

Bruno-"No problem."

Bruno then places his hoof on the clone and begins to contact Applejack's group to let them know about Spike's arrival to them.

Bruno(speaking into clone)-"Applejack, can you hear me? Please respond."

Applejack's group 5 minutes before Bruno contacts them.

Meanwhile back at the hotel as Applejack and the others get settled in for the rest of the day and as Applejack is about to contact the others she is contacted by Bruno a second before she contacts the others.

Applejack-"Well after looking around this place for some time now I must say that these humans have really outdone themselves over the many years they have been around."

Rarity-"I couldn't agree with you more. I may only have seen a part of this city and and I must say that including this hotel, these humans have great taste in both fashion and interior design for not only the buildings but their clothing too. In fact I found a piece of clothing that I must show to the others later, but for now I'll get settled into my LARGE room."

Pinkie Pie-"That reminds me. Should we tell them where we are?"

Applejack-"That's a good idea. I'll use the clone to contact them right now."

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"Applejack, can you hear me? Please respond."

Applejack-"What the!?"

Rainbow Dash-"Well that was fast."

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"Applejack are you there? Can anypony hear me?"

Applejack(speaking into clone)-"I'm here Bruno. I was just about to contact you and the others about the place we found for all of us to sleep for the night. What's up?"

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"Well so far we collected some books that were of great use to us for our mission but no luck on finding anything that can help us translate the language in the book that contains the information needed for making the Philosophers Stone."

Applejack(speaking into clone)-"So that means we have to go to the remaining libraries to find those notes?"

Rainbow Dash(speaking into clone)-"You have got to be kidding me! We have to go through the entire city after all?"

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"Technically yes but there is a bright side to all of this. You see earlier today Applebloom and her group discovered an entrance that goes underground and she and the others found some tunnels and there were train tracks in those tunnels too."

Applejack(speaking into clone)-"Wait. Train tracks underground? How can that be?"

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"The humans had built an underground railroad system so that the humans could travel to different parts of the city real fast and if Twilight and Cadence can get the train running again then it will make our mission go a lot faster for us."

Rainbow Dash(speaking into clone)-"That's amazing! I had no idea that the humans had built something this awesome."

Applejack(speaking into clone)-"And it was my sister who made this discovery?"

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"Oh yeah. I'll tell you all the rest of it later when we all meet up at your location but for now I have to meet up with Twilight and the others at their current location in the tunnels."

Applejack(speaking into clone)-"Wait, what are you still doing at the library?"

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"I'm looking for some maps of the tunnels so that if we do use the train to get to each of the remaining libraries we'll at least know which way to go when we use them."

Rainbow Dash-"That makes sense."

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"By the way I'm sending Spike to your location right now so I'll need you to get the scroll ready for his arrival."

Applejack(speaking into clone)-"How come you're sending Spike to us? Didn't he go with Twilight and Cadence to the tunnels too?"

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"Spike was so tired from working with us all day that he ended up passing out on the table here at the library so Twilight thought that it would be best to send him to you since your group was supposed to find a place for all of us to sleep tonight and since you did I can send him to you so he can rest for the night."

Applejack(speaking into clone)-"You can send him here just let me go get the scroll from Rarity real quick. Be right back."

Applejack then runs down to Rarity's room and asks her for the scroll.

Applejack(after knocking on door)-"Rarity are you awake?"

Rarity-"I'm busy right now. Can you come back later."

Applejack-"No Rarity. Bruno just contacted me and he's sending Spike over to us and I need that scroll so that we can receive him. He's passed out from working all day and he really needs to rest here for the night."

Rarity(after opening door)-"Oh poor Spikey wikey. Hang on I'll take it to the entrance myself and get it ready."

Applejack-"Thanks Rarity."

Rarity and Applejack then bring the scroll to the entrance and open it for Spikes arrival.

Rarity-"It's open."

Applejack(Speaking into clone)-"It's ready Bruno."

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"OK. I'll get Spike. Stand-by."

At the Library.

Bruno then uses his magic to levitate a passed out Spike to the scroll and then teleports him to Applejack's group.

Bruno(speaking into clone)-"OK Applejack. Here he comes."

At the Hotel.  
Spike is then teleported to the Hotel and after he arrives Rarity decides to take him to her room till she decides what room to put him after the others arrive later.

Applejack(speaking into clone)-"He arrived safely Bruno."

Bruno(speaking through clone)-"That's great Applejack. I have to go now but I'll be sure to send the others from the tunnels to your location later tonight via the scrolls so be sure to keep them ready for transport and also since I'll be flying to you all later tonight be sure to have either Twilight, Cadence or Rarity ready to send out a signal for me to see so that I can find you. OK?"

Applejack(speaking into clone)-"No problem Bruno. Applejack out."

Rarity-"Oh poor Spike. I'll take him to my room so he can rest for now."

Applejack-"Well that's nice of you but I thought you wanted that room to yourself?"

Rarity-"Well I do but I found another room right across from me that's the same as mine and I thought I would hold on to that room too for now."

Rainbow Dash-"Now wait just a minute! We said that you can have first pick of the room you want for yourself but there's no way you are getting two rooms to yourself."

Applejack-"She's right Rarity. You can only pick one room for yourself."

Rarity-"Hold on. The other room I'm saving is not for me."

Rainbow Dash-"What do you mean by that?"

Rarity-"I'm saving that room for Sweetie Belle and her friends for tonight. I figured that since that room has the same big bed as mine I figured that they could all sleep there tonight and maybe Spike can sleep with them to since the bed is big enough for the five of them. I mean you're not going to deny my sister and your sister and her friends a nice place to sleep for when they come here tonight are you?"

Applejack-"Alright Rarity but next time you want to save a room for the girls just let me know ahead of time instead of telling us at the last minute."

Rarity-"Fair enough."

Fluttershy-"Good news everypony. I managed to clean out the gunk in the hot springs outside but I had to drain it to do that but after it fills back up and gets heated up in about 3 hours then we'll be ready for a nice hot soak under the moonlight tonight and I managed to find all these jars filled with herbal salts, oils and leaves to make the hot springs feel and smell so nice."

Rarity-"Oh that would be nice. I'm going back to my room for now."

Applejack-"OK Rarity. We'll let you know when the others arrive and when the hot springs are ready too."

Meanwhile at the Library. Bruno is just finished in the Library and is getting ready to meet Twilight and the others in the tunnels to see if the train is working in order to speed up their mission for the Princess.

Bruno-"Well that's the last of them. Now Zetsu, I'll be sending you and your clone to Twilight's location right now and make sure that you raise your energy so that I can pin point your location better."

White Zetsu-"Sure thing."

Bruno then contacts Twilight's group to let her know of Zetsu's arrival.

Bruno(speaking into clone)-"Twilight can you hear me?"

Twilight(speaking through clone)-"Yes Bruno I can hear you. What's going on?"

Bruno(Speaking into clone)-"I managed to find the maps of the tunnels and I'm sending Zetsu and his clone to your location right now and then I'll be flying to your location after that."

Twilight(speaking through clone)-"That good and I have some good news for you. The train is running perfectly so there's no need to repair it so this way we can just go to where Applejack and her group is so we can rest and look over those maps for the evening. Is that OK?"

Bruno(Speaking into clone)-"That's great! I'm sending Zetsu and the clone to you now so get the scroll ready."

Twilight(speaking through clone)-OK Bruno."

Bruno then Sends Zetsu and the clone to Twilight's group and after he's done he then proceeds to fly to Twilight's location on his own.

After flying for about an hour Bruno then arrives at the park and spots Twilight and the others above ground and after he lands he then decides to teleport everyone else to Applejack's location for the night.

Lyra-"Hey Brother. Did you find what you were looking for?"

Bruno-"Well yes and no. I'll explain everything later when we get to the hotel where Applejack and the others are and get something to eat."

Twilight-"Yes Bruno."

Bruno-"That's good now I can take everyone to Applejack's location for some dinner and rest so everyone get ready. I just have to contact Applejack and let her know that we're coming right now."

Cadence-"Are we going to teleport to the others by the scrolls?"

Bruno-"Not tonight. I plan to take all of you into my pocket dimension and fly myself and the rest of you there. It will be faster than sending each of you there by scroll since I can only teleport each of you all one at a time."

Twilight-"That would make things faster."

Bruno-"I know."

Bruno then contacts Applejack with the Zetsu clone and tells her about his arrival.

Bruno(speaking into clone)-"Applejack can you hear me?"

Applejack(speaking through clone)-"I'm here Bruno. What's going on?"

Bruno(speaking into clone)-"I need you to get Rarity and send her outside in about 2 minutes so that she can use her magic to shoot a ball of light into the air so I can find your location. I plan to fly there with everyone in my pocket dimension so can you get her ready please?"

Applejack(speaking through clone)-"Sure thing. I'll get her now. Applejack out."

Bruno-"Alright everyone if you can gather together I can transport you all to Applejack's location."

Bruno then sucks everyone into his pocket dimension and then flies to the roof one of the buildings close to him to look for Rarity's signal.

Meanwhile at the hotel.

Applejack(after knocking on Rarity's door)-"Rarity I need your help with something pronto."

Rarity(after opening door)-"What is it now Applejack?"

Applejack-"Bruno just contacted me and he's planning to fly to us but since it got too dark he needs your magic to help him find our location. He's flying everyone here in his pocket dimension and your magic is needed."

Rarity-"Alright but I need to get up on to the roof so I can signal him better."

Applejack-"Sounds good."

Rarity then proceeds to go on to the roof of the hotel.

Rarity-"Well her goes nothing. I hope this is bright enough for you to see Bruno."

With her magic she shoots a ball of light into the sky and it explodes so brightly that Bruno is able to see from his location.

Bruno-"Where is that signal? I just hope it's bright enough to see at this time of..."

Bruno then spots the ball of light exploding and then flies to it really fast.

Bruno-"There it is. looks like it's due north-west."

Bruno then flies off and after flying really fast for 15 minutes he finally arrives on the hotel roof to meet up with the others and is greeted by Rarity.

Rarity-"Welcome back Bruno. I hope you and the others found what you were looking for?"

Bruno-"Well yes and no. How about I tell you all what happened today during dinner after I let the others out. Which reminds me would you like a ride down to the entrance?"

Rarity-"Oh well that's very thoughtful of you Bruno."

Bruno-"Hop on."

Bruno then flies Rarity down to the hotel entrance and is also greeted by Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash.

Bruno-"Well here's your stop Rarity."

Rarity-"Thanks Bruno."

Applejack-"Welcome back Bruno."

Rainbow Dash-"So are you going to tell us everything that happened today?"

Pinkie Pie-"Oh did you bring any gifts from the Library?"

Bruno-"Well if you first let me get the others out then you will all have your questions answered. Please stand back a bit."

Bruno then releases everyone from his pocket dimension and everyone is happy to see each other after a long day and afterwards they decide to get settle down for some dinner and then take a hot bath in the hotels hot spring and then get ready for bed.

Applejack-"Hey Twilight. So how was everyponys day so far?"

Twilight-"Well aside from constantly looking in the first Library of Amestris and only finding very little of what we need the rest of the day turned out to be very exciting. How about the rest of you?"

Rarity-"Well thanks to the duplication spell you taught me I found a bunch of clothing stores and used that spell to make Thousands of copies of every piece of rare and expensive clothing and the materials they were made from so I can use them for my shop when i get back to Ponyville."

Twilight-"You made thousands of everything? Where are you going to keep it all. If I recall you store won't hold that much stuff."

Rarity-"You're right. i may have to rent out a place to keep all of the excess materials."

Bruno-"I hate to break up this conversation but I was hoping that you all would go and pick out your rooms for the night and while you all do that I'll be making dinner for everyone and afterwards we'll take a nice hot bath and plan out what the plan is for tomorrow. OK?"

Everyone-"Sounds good!"

Fluttershy-"Um regarding the hot springs. When I found it earlier the water was green with algae and all other sorts of gunk so I had to drain it and refill it and after it's filled back up it will take some time for it to heat back up."

Cadence-"How long are we talking about?"

Fluttershy-"Well I drained it about 2 hours ago and it should be full by now and from it's size it will finish heating up within an hour so having dinner will kill some time till it's heated up to the right temperature for a really hot soak."

Bruno-"Sounds good to me. Now let's go pick out our rooms for the night while I make us some dinner for tonight."

Rarity-"That reminds. Sweetie Bell. I have a surprise for you and your friends."

Sweetie Belle-"What is it?"

Rarity-"Just follow me and you will see."

As everyone goes to to pick out there rooms Sweetie Belle, Lyra, Applebloom and Scootaloo are surprised to see the room they're staying in with the gigantic bed but there was a catch.

Rarity-"Well here is where you girls will be staying tonight."

Sweetie Belle-"Your giving us this huge room Sis?"

Applebloom-"I don't know what to say."

Scootaloo-"look at the size of that bed."

Lyra-"Thanks Rarity but I have a question. Why is spike in here and sleeping in our bed?"

Rarity-"Well Spike was so tired that he passed out from working with Twilight so your brother decided to send him here to rest for the rest of the day and as for why he's in your bed I figured that you girls would like to share the bed with Spike and have a slumber party tonight for your first night here in Amestris. You don't mind sharing the bed with spike do you? I mean the bed is big enough for the 5 of you."

Applebloom-"We don't mind at all."

Rarity-"That's great girls. Why don't you all get settled in and I'll let you know when dinner and that bath is ready and be sure to wake Spike up for that too."

Sweetie Belle-"Sure thing Sis."

Meanwhile in the hotel Kitchen. Bruno is about make everyone some dinner and as he's about take some food out of his pocket dimension Cadence and Twilight come in and ask him some questions.

Bruno-"Wow this kitchen is really big. Well I better get dinner ready."

Cadence-"Bruno. You got a minute?"

Bruno-"Cadence. Twilight. What can I do for you two? I was just about to start making dinner for everyone."

Twilight-"Well Cadence and I were thinking about what happened earlier today when your sister sensed the souls of the fallen Amestrians and it got us thinking about the chance that something from 1500 years ago may still be lurking around."

Cadence-"I think what Twilight is trying to say is that who will be on guard since we'll all be sleeping tonight?"

Bruno-"Actually I'm glad you asked. Zetsu and his clones will keeping guard outside tonight and since they're made of plant based materials they don't need to sleep. Do you want to know a bit about Zetsu's abilities?"

Cadence-"Sure."

Twilight-"Well the only thing I remember him doing was when he replaced your arm a few days ago. Are you saying that he has other powers too?"

Bruno-"Yes but what you saw is only one of his powers that the white half has. His black half can merge with the elements in the earth underground and spread a paper thin layer of black moss a mile in diameter which can be used to detect anything that steps on it as friend or foe and since he knows who we are in the event we step on it he'll know who it is because he also has some kind of psychic power that can also read the mind of whoever steps on it and then alert us if something he thinks is a threat that may be coming our way. Also while the real Zetsu is underground the white half will sprout these flowers in areas that have dirt that can act as eyes in the event the enemy may have found a way to not be detected by the black moss and as for the clones they will be standing guard outside. Two on the ground and one on the roof."

Twilight-"I'm impressed that you have pretty much figured this out."

Cadence-"Well that puts my mind at ease for tonight but is that all Zetsu can do?"

Bruno-"Well aside from the things I just told you and that he also can make clones of himself like he did earlier today that's pretty much all I know that he can do. He may have more abilities than that but for now you at least know what he's able to do."

Twilight-"That's true and thanks Bruno. We'll let you get back to making our dinner unless you want us to help you?"

Bruno-"No thank you. I'm planning to make this dinner special for everyone for our first night here in Amestris."

Cadence-"Well OK Bruno. We'll let you continue on your own while we get settled in our rooms for the night."

Bruno then begins to prepare everyone's dinner and after 45 minutes he then goes to get the others and then brings them to the hotels dining room and they're surprised at the things he made.

Bruno-"Everyone dinner is ready. Please follow me to the dining room."

Pinkie Pie-"Oh I wonder what he did with the food we got?"

Rarity-"I've never seen him cook so we'll see what the outcome is."

Spike-"Well it better be worth waking me up from my well needed rest."

Cadence-"Well what ever he did we should all thank him for his hard...OH MY GOODNESS!"

Twilight-"Bruno this is amazing!"

Rainbow Dash-"Look at this spread!"

Bruno-"I figured that you would like it so I made the following meals. Vegetable Stir-fry, hay-fries, side salads with diced fruit mixed into it and for Spike that Big bowl over there is filled with a type of gem stone known as quartz crystals for you and for Desert I decided to lay out some of food that Pinkie Pie bought in Canterlot. Two cakes and some doughnuts and whatever you don't finish I'll save for when we need to eat again tomorrow."

Spike(While drooling)-"Did you say quartz crystals? I haven't had those since I was little!"

Bruno-"Well this dinner is special because this the first time in over 1500 years that anyone from Equestria has set foot in Amestris. So everyone DIG IN!"

Haru-"This is very nice of you son."

Everyone then sits down to a wonderful dinner and after an hour and a half of eating and sharing with each other the things they did and saw during their day they decide to go to the hot springs and relax with a nice long bath.

Applejack-"Well I don't know about you all but I'm stuffed."

Pinkie Pie-"Bruno that was the best dinner ever. Do you plan on doing it again soon."

Bruno-"Well I was thinking about that and I figured that depending on where we stay next if that place has a kitchen then I can do it again but if not then we'll just have to eat something else that does not require cooking."

Cadence-"Speaking of cooking what is that first dish you mentioned earlier. Stir something?"

Bruno-"Vegetable Stir Fry. I was looking at some of the cook books that were in the kitchen that the humans used and I found this meal where you cut some of the vegetables into skinny pieces and cook them in oil. I found something called peanut oil that I used to fry the vegetables in this pot that looks more like a bowl and I decided to give it a try."

Twilight-"That explains why they tasted a little greasy but otherwise they tasted great."

Rainbow Dash-"I agree."

Fluttershy-"Well if everyone is finished eating then we should get to the hot springs for a nice hot bath."

Haru-"I agree. let's go!"

Everyone then proceeds to the hot springs and then jumps in for their relaxing bath together.

Rarity-"Oh now this is more like it and it smells really nice. Fluttershy did you put any of those herbal salts into it?"

Fluttershy-"Well yes. I mixed in bath salts and dried mint leaves, chamomile and tea leaves and something called essence of milk-weed and a small vile of something called tea-tree oil and I found them in a room filled with large jars full of these herbal salts and leaves and oils used for the hot springs."

Twilight-"Did you say essence of milk-weed? Well that explains why the water has a white-ish color to it but other than that it smells and feels great."

Cadence-"I agree you did a great job Fluttershy."

Fluttershy(while blushing)-"Oh it's no problem and thank you so much."

Rarity-"I was thinking that tomorrow morning I'll use my duplication spell to make a few copies of those salts and other stuff for the hot springs and when we get back to Ponyville I'll give them to Aloe and Lotus and the Ponyville Spa."

Pinkie Pie-"Why would you want to give them those things?"

Twilight-"I agree. Don't Aloe and Lotus already have stuff like that for their spa?"

Rarity-"Well sort of. I just want them to have some of the herbs and oils that the humans used for their spas and hot springs so others in Equestria can experience what we're feeling at this moment. Plus Aloe and Lotus only have 15% of what Fluttershy found to make this bath so incredible."

Rainbow Dash-"I couldn't agree with you more."

Fluttershy-"Well that's nice of you to want to help out Aloe and Lotus like that."

Rarity-"Thank you."

Twilight-"Anyway does anyone know what the plan for tomorrow is?"

Bruno-"Well I was thinking about that and It may look like that of the 3 groups two of them will have to look at the next two libraries by splitting up. Basically since group 1, my group was looking in only one library today it looks like that group 1 will look in the next library while group two does the same but in the library after that."

Rainbow Dash-"Hold on a minute! There's no way that I'm spending all day looking in a library for some forgotten alchemy books. I want to see more of the city."

Rarity-"I agree. I still want to look in more clothing shops to find and copy more materials for my shop back home. I mean, I know that this mission is extremely important to Princess Celestia given the recent events that happened but we should at least try to enjoy ourselves while we're here in Amestris. Am I right?"

Twilight-"You do have a good point Rarity and besides if anything strange happened back in Equestria while we're here then Princess Celestia would have informed us by sending us a letter through Spike."

Spike-"Speaking of me. What about your promise to let me see the city after helping you in the library. Does this mean that I have to look in the next library tomorrow too?"

Twilight-"That may be a possibility Spike."

Spike-"Well that's just great. Now I may never get to see the city with the others. This Bites!"

Rarity-"Goodness Spike!"

Twilight-"Hey! I told you to watch your mouth Spike!"

Spike-"I'm sorry but that's how I feel right now."

Bruno-"Actually I may have an idea on how to solve that."

Spike-"What do you mean?"

Bruno-"Well I was thinking that you could go with Lyra and the girls group tomorrow since they have to look for another place for us to sleep that night and since they have to look around the city to do that then you can take in the view while you do that and Rainbow Dash and Rarity could look after them. Are the three of you OK with that?"

Rarity-"Foal-sitting my sister and her friends while I 'shop around' sounds good to me."

Rainbow Dash-"I'm OK with that."

Spike-"I like that."

Bruno-"Well then it's settled."

Twilight-"Well what about the other two groups. How will you figure out who goes where tomorrow?"

Bruno-"I'll plan that out just before I go to bed tonight and give you all the rest of the details in the morning."

Everyone-"Sounds good."

After soaking for about an hour and a half everyone decides to get dried off and get ready for bed.

Rarity-"I think my hooves are getting a bit pruney. I'm going to dry off and get ready for bed."

Bruno-"Sounds like a good idea."

Twilight-"I agree. After I get dried off I'll write today's progress report to Princess Celestia before I get to bed. Would you be willing to help me with that Spike?"

Spike-"Sure thing Twilight."

Haru-"That reminds me. Lyra. You and your friends get dried off and ready for bed soon. We have an early start in the morning."

Lyra-"OK Dad."

As Bruno and the others head to their rooms for the night Twilight asks Spike to help with her letter to Princess Celestia.

Rarity-"Well Sweetie Belle I hope you and your friends enjoy your room for the night."

Sweetie Belle-"We will sis and thanks a lot."

Scootaloo-"Thanks again Rarity."

Applebloom-"Ditto."

Lyra-"Where will you be sleeping Dad?"

Haru-"MY room will be right next to yours so if you need me for anything and don't forget that Spike will be sleeping with you four tonight so leave the door open a bit so he can get in to sleep."

Spike-"Thanks but Twilight's Room has an extra bed and she asked me to stay with her tonight after I write her letter to Princess Celestia so you girls can have it to yourselves."

Lyra-"OK Spike."

Pinkie Pie-"Well good night everyone."

Everyone else-"Good night."

As the others close the doors to their rooms Twilight then gets to work on her letter to Princess Celestia.

Spike-"Thanks for offering the extra bed for me Twilight but I didn't mind sharing that big bed with the girls tonight."

Twilight-"It's no trouble Spike and besides since we practically sleep in the same room every night I kind of gotten used to it. Now if you're ready, will you take a letter for me?"

Spike-"Sure thing."

Twilight's Letter-"Dear Princess Celestia, So far day one of our journey through the Amestrian capitol, Heliopolis has been a bit interesting. First we tried to get into the palace to view the contents of its' library but we had no luck getting in. Bruno tried using his alchemy to make a door since we were nowhere near the main entrance but his alchemy had no effect on making a door and Lyra tried to break an opening into the palace with her super strength but we noticed that the palace walls began to repair itself with a magic that was still protecting the palace from intruders and realizing that we could not get in by force we decided to check out the 5 other libraries and after hours of going through the first one today we were only able to find some stuff that may be of use but we intend to read them all after we visit the last library and collect some more stuff that we can use to make the Philosophers Stone. Also Bruno decided to show off some useful tools that he made when he and Lyra were training with their teacher during their travels and so far what he showed us were these scrolls that had the ability to teleport objects and other ponies from one location to another or if they needed to be sent to Bruno's pocket dimension when he's not around and they turned out to be very useful for everyone. Another thing we saw is another of Zetsu's powers. He spit out these 3 blobs that grew into clones of his white side and they have this ability where one pony can communicate with another with some kind of telepathy and it was awesome. Another thing that we discovered today, thanks to Applebloom is a series of tunnels that were underground and Cadence told me that they were used as an underground railroad network for transporting the humans to different parts of the city and I was shocked to see that the humans had come so far with this level of construction but Bruno figured that these trains would be of some use to make our mission go a lot faster and I and the others fully agreed with him on that matter. After a few hours we decided to settle down for the night in this giant hotel that was in the city and after Bruno made us a wonderful dinner for our first night in Amestris and afterwards we decided to take a long hot bath in the hotels hot springs and we all feel very well relaxed and we plan to continue our mission to help create the power we need to defeat the 'Demon of Equestria'. Yeah I just came up with that name. Anyway I'll keep you up to date with our progress in Amestris and promise to let you know if we find anything out of the ordinary. Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle. P.S. Would you please let our families know that we're doing just fine and that includes my brother and my parents. I don't want them to worry about us too much."

Spike then breathes his green fire to send the letter to Princess Celestia.

Spike(yawning)-"I'm going to sleep now. Good night Twilight."

Twilight-"Me too. Good night Spike."

As the last of the lights go out Twilight and her friends get a good nights sleep while Zetsu and his clones keep guard for the night.

Meanwhile underneath Amestris the Homunculi are communicating with their master from underneath Canterlot via telepathy and gives them new orders to help further his plan to becoming a god.

Envy-"So Pride. What's the situation with the ponies?"

Pride-"Well so far all they have done is collect books and they are now resting for the night."

Lust-"Well I'm bored with what's going on so far and speaking of rest. Where is Sloth?"

Envy-"Yeah. Shouldn't he be here with us? Plus didn't Greed and Wrath wake up with the rest too?"

Pride-"Well if Greed is not here then that must mean our master is not ready to release him from his prison considering what he did to get sealed away in the first place and as for Sloth and Wrath I'm not sure why they're not here with us-unless..."

Suddenly a white eye appears on the wall of the Homunculi's hideout and they hear their masters voice coming from it.

Unknown Human(speaking from the eye)-"If you must know. Sloth and Wrath were transported to my location while they were still in hibernation. I need them here in Equestria for later."

The Homunculi-"MASTER!"

Envy-"Master. It's good to hear your voice after being in hibernation for so long."

Pride-"We live to serve you master and as for the ponies we followed your instructions and left them alone and unharmed to search for what they seek."

Unknown Human(speaking from the eye)-"That's good but time may not be on my side for my plans so I have new orders for you all to carry out."

Envy-"Finally I get to beat them to a bloody pulp! Just give the word and I'll kill them all in less then ten minutes."

Unknown Human(speaking from the eye)-"I know you are eager to spill the blood of those from Equestria but for now I still need them unharmed while they are here in Amestris."

Envy-"WHAT?! But master you must let me..."

Unknown Human(speaking from the eye)-"I give you my word that you will be able to kill them when the time is right but for now I'm ordering you to leave them alone and I promise you Gluttony that will be able to fill your belly with that of the Equestrian royal family."

Gluttony-"Thank you master."

Lust-"So what are your new orders master?"

Unknown Human(speaking from the eye)-"I need you to make sure that they find what they are looking for sooner so that they can get that information back to Princess Celestia."

Pride-"But master if they know what the philosophers stone is really made of then they won't have any intention of making it."

Unknown Human(speaking from the eye)-"Even if they discover the dark truth of the stones and decide not to make it then it won't have a negative effect on my plans. If need be then you can make sure that they find what they need by pointing them towards my old laboratory where it all started and even if they unearth everything else there my plans will still be on track for me and if they do go to the laboratory then make sure that those guards don't lay a finger on them."

Lust-"You want them to go to your old lab and if so what do we do if they discover Greed?"

Unknown Human(speaking from the eye)-"Like I said what they find won't affect my plans so let them get everything. I'm so far ahead of them that even if Greed goes over to their side I'll still be four steps ahead of them and nothing they do now will hinder my plans."

Pride-"Our master knows what he's doing so we can relax for now. I'll make sure that I point them in the right direction while they're here."

Envy-"What exactly are you going to doing in Canterlot while we just sit and wait?"

Unknown Human(speaking from the eye)-"For now I'm resting and continuing to spy on Canterlot and tomorrow evening I'll be going to the Canterlot Archives to steal something that will be of use to me and as for now continue with what I ordered you to do until I say otherwise."

The Homunculi-"Yes master! we shall obey you!"

Meanwhile underneath Canterlot.

Unknown human-"If the Canterlot archives holds the item that the great Leto made during the war from 1200 years ago then my plans will continue even faster. I will hold one of the ultimate weapons of Equestria that Celestia deemed a crime against nature and against life itself and it will force Celestia's hand or in her case her hoof in my favor but for now I'll continue to spy on Canterlot and make my next move tomorrow evening."

Meanwhile in the middle of the night several miles outside of Canterlot a cloaked figure stares at the palace from a distance.

Cloaked figure-"I managed to escape from that prison and after 7 years of hiding I'm finally close to my target. I swear by all that is holy I will not let you do to the same thing to Equestria like you did to Amestris! I will send you to HELL for the crimes that you did to my country and my people, this I swear this to God and on the blood of my fallen friends and family! I shall be avenge every life that you have taken, Sir Lawrence of the Amestrian Royal guard! I will pass judgement on you, you traitor!"

As the cloaked figure starts running towards Canterlot his hood comes off and the light from the full moon reveals that he's a Human with dark skin, white hair, sunglasses and an "X" shaped scar on his face.

Ending notes of chapter 6.

So far the ponies have only been able to get very little of what they seek and what is this weapon that the unknown human is looking for in Canterlot and who is this second human that seeks revenge? Is he an ally or possibly another enemy and is 'Sir Lawrence' the true name of the unknown human beneath Canterlot and how is it that this second human is still alive after 1500 years?


End file.
